Going My Way?
by Agent R
Summary: Duncan meets 16 year old Amber, an Immortal he soon takes in ater discovering she's hunted by Mario. Story FINISHED. Very funny, lots of action, please read and review.
1. Default Chapter

Going My Way?  
  
Summary: Duncan finds out that Joe's bringing in a new arrival of an Immortal, a 16 year old juvenile delinquent from the states. After everything he's been through, Duncan thinks he's got a hold on this kid, but that's before he finds out they're stuck working together, but Joe won't tell him why.  
  
Rating-PG13  
  
Genre-humor/action/adventure  
  
Disclaimer: I'm not responsible for Highlander or any of the characters.  
  
It was a cold day in Swedan, a train was heading to the end of the country, on one of the cars, a stowaway Duncan MacLeod was out cold, using a sack of potatoes for a pillow. As he woke up, he found himself surrounded by a purple light, then disappearing altogether, and reappearing in what looked like some center. He looked around, surrounded by dark at every turn.  
  
"Kinda reminds ya of old times, doesn't it?"  
  
Duncan turned around, ready to behead the first thing that moved, and found Joe Dawson walking by him.  
  
"How the hell did I get here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Calm down, you want that vein in your forehead to explode?" Joe laughed.  
  
"This is no laughing matter Joe, now where the hell am I?" Duncan asked, "I knew I shouldn't have listened to you, go to Britain and get a rest, go to Europe and get some air, go to Swedan and get frozen air, this is insane! Now where the hell am I?"  
  
"Calm down will you? The dead can probably hear you, look, you're in a restricted government research center in Russia," Joe started.  
  
"Russia?" Duncan asked.  
  
"We had to bring you in unannounced otherwise someone would catch smart," Joe said.  
  
"Cut to the chase, Joe, you send me on a wild goose chase for 3 days from Britain to Europe to Swedan, then you have some mental case bring me in here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I had you out there for 3 days because I didn't have a choice," Joe told him.  
  
"What about?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Do you mind if I ask you a question? How many problems have you had with expert Immortals?" Joe asked.  
  
"None of them," Duncan answered.  
  
"Allright, how many juveniles have you encountered?" Joe asked.  
  
"Hundreds of them," Duncan said.  
  
Duncan wasn't quite getting the connection with these questions.  
  
"What's the point?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Do you think you would have trouble with a juvenile?" Joe asked.  
  
"Was one once," Duncan replied.  
  
"Think you could handle having one around?" Joe asked.  
  
"He's not rabid is he?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It's not a 'he'," Joe replied.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"We received word today of a 16-year-old arrival from the states, and from what we've heard, she's not bad either," Joe said.  
  
"This is ridiculous, a juvenile girl's coming here, and she's an Immortal?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Quite so, word of warning, she's a real delinquent," Joe warned him.  
  
"After what I've seen, I doubt she could do anything to surprise me," Duncan said.  
  
"We'll soon see," Joe said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Here she comes," Joe pointed out.  
  
Duncan turned around, in came a girl with pale skin, about 5'5, in ratty beat up clothes, and for some reason, she seemed to be glowing a bright blue.   
  
"I'll take it you're the new arrival I was told about?" Duncan asked.  
  
But the girl didn't say anything, she just looked at him.  
  
"What's going on? Why isn't she talking?" Duncan asked.  
  
"We'll take her for now..."  
  
A lady in a white lab coat came up and took the girl by the arm.  
  
"What's going on here? Who are all these people?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I told you she was coming in from the States, the government sent over some of the best medical staff in the region to make sure she's not infected on arrival," Joe explained.  
  
"Why isn't she talking?" Duncan asked.  
  
The lady pointed to the girl's foot, there was a small chain wrapped around her ankle.  
  
"I told you she was a juvenile delinquent, she's supposed to wear an ankle bracelet whenever she travels," Joe explained.  
  
"The bracelet also mutes her temporarily, we're going to examine her and make sure she's okay before we release her to you," the doctor said.  
  
The lady took the girl into another room and bolted the door.  
  
"Is this some kind of joke?" Duncan asked Joe.  
  
"It's no joke at all, you have to keep an eye on her, you two are going to be working together," he told him.  
  
"What?" Duncan didn't like the sound of that.  
  
"Immortals seem to follow her wherever she goes, lately, its been one that says he's looking for you. She said she didn't know you, but he didn't believe her. He also never stuck around for a Quickening, he just pops in and out like that and disappears," Joe said.  
  
"This doesn't make any sense," Duncan said.  
  
"I know, which is why I didn't tell you until now, if I did, odds are you would've put a stop to it before she arrived. Now listen Duncan, the important thing here is that you two don't go separate ways, this guy's bound to pop up out of nowhere. He's an expert here, no Immortal you've gone up against yet will give you the slightest idea of what to expect from him," Joe explained.  
  
Before Joe could go into anymore details, they heard screaming from the back, they ran around in time to see the doctor come out of the exam room and lock it.  
  
"What's going on?" Duncan asked.  
  
"She's a monster, she wouldn't let us remove the ankle bracelet, so she tried to kill us, we had to sedate her to get it off, she'll be out for a few hours, so we're safe for now," the doctor said.  
  
The doctor went down the hall, Duncan turned to Joe.  
  
"I'm working with her?" he asked.  
  
"That's right," Joe said.  
  
"Doesn't sound like I'll have too much trouble," he thought.  
  
Joe wandered off down the hall to pick up the records on her, Duncan slipped around the back and managed to get into the exam room. The girl was out cold on a hospital bed, naked with a small sheet thrown over her body. Her clothes were on the exam table, with something sticking out of one of her pockets, Duncan heard some ruckus in the other room, he listened with his ear to the wall.  
  
"You think he'll be along?" one doctor asked.  
  
"I told him she was arriving today, he'll be here," the other replied.  
  
"What's he looking for anyway?" the first one asked.  
  
"That guy we brought here earlier, what's his name, Duncan MacLeod," the other responded.  
  
"Well, when he gets here, we won't have to worry about either of them," the first laughed.  
  
Duncan walked over to the table and picked up her clothes, and underneath them were the records.   
  
Name: Amber Jenzon  
  
Height: 5'5  
  
Weight: 127  
  
Eyes: Blue  
  
Hair: Sandy  
  
Blood type: A-positive  
  
Underneath those papers were a thick bunch stapled togehter, it was a rap sheet.  
  
Grand larceny   
  
Grand theft auto  
  
assault and battery  
  
breaking and entering  
  
domestic violence  
  
firearm possession  
  
possession of deadly weapon w/out license  
  
attempted murder  
  
robbery  
  
The rap sheet went on and on, and underneath that was a newspaper bulletin, from an old newspaper in Philidelphia.  
  
June 14th, 1995, Jennifer Jenzon, 32, and Ryan Jenzon, 34, were killed today at 10:13 A.M when the vehicle they were driving crashed into Kenny Hepburn's Antique Store's front display window. No explanation has been given as to why their car ran off the road as of yet, Sergeant Mike Turner suspects poor mechanical work on the brakes. Funeral services will be held June 19th at 2:00 PM.  
  
Duncan looked over at Amber, and realized what kind of trouble she was in, left out cold, when this other Immortal showed up, she wouldn't have a chance of surviving. He got an idea, he picked Amber's lifeless body off the bed and put her on a gurney and rolled her down the hall to a different location.  
  
He bolted the doors shut and made sure that there was no other way in, then he got a better look at all the papers. The profile on Amber was packed with information, the rap sheet seemed to be the size of a phone book, but Duncan had his doubts about the story of the car crash. He got up and slipped over to a filing cabinet, he pulled out a map of the United States, on the back was an index card for an enlarged map of every state. Going down to the second drawer, he pulled out a large map of Philidelphia, and looked up Amber's old address, and then the antique store's address.   
  
Then it hit him, Joe went down to the first floor to pick up these papers, why would the doctors have them? And where was Joe at this time? Just as he thought he was getting somewhere, he heard something, in a panic, he shoved the maps back in the drawer and turned around. Amber seemed to be coming out of the sedation, Duncan walked over to her to make sure she was allright, when she opened her eyes, she looked up and let out a scream that screeched like a bob cat with his tail in a blender.  
  
"Who are you?" she asked.  
  
"I'm Duncan MacLeod, I'll take it your Amber Jenzon," he said.  
  
"Yeah, I-----where am I?" she asked, "this isn't the exam room!"  
  
"No it isn't, I moved you down here, turns out the doctors have connections with someone neither one of us is too thrilled about seeing," Duncan said.  
  
"Well, let's see if you can answer this question, who stole my clothes?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan laughed as he grabbed her clothes and handed them to her.  
  
"Hmmmmm, smart boy, how old are you?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan gritted his teeth as he tried hard not to laugh.  
  
"Too old for you," he said.  
  
At that time, they heard several people coming down the hall, when they left, Amber came to a conclusion.  
  
"So, you're the guy that Mario's been talking about?" she asked.  
  
"Mario's the name of this Immortal?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah, he's been looking for you," Amber replied.  
  
"Then why is he coming after you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"For some strange reason, he thinks I know you, but that's just plain crap, I only met you today," she said.  
  
"Well, it doesn't look like he could get in here very easily, looks like everyone's carrying a machine gun," Duncan said.  
  
"Wonderful, now that that's settled, let's get the heck out of here," Amber replied.  
  
"I have an idea on how to do that," Duncan told her.  
  
"A 14 page rap sheet?" Joe asked the guard.  
  
"That's right, that girl has caused some trouble, but now it's gone, I guess somebody must've waltzed in and gotten it," the guard replied.  
  
"Imagine that," Joe said, "the nerve of some people."  
  
"Sergeant O' Hara, the patient has escaped!" Doctor Schmok said.  
  
"What? Sound the alarms!" the guard yelled.  
  
Sirens blew all over the center, bright red lights flashed everywhere. On the top floor, someobody had come upon a brainstorm of escape. Duncan stormed by the 10th floor on a motorcycle with Amber holding onto him, he made a sharp turn and busted out through the window, fell down a diagonal direction, and landed onto a lower roof of the building, down that one, to the next one, then once they went down the 3rd roof, they got thrown off the motorcycle and rolled down to the streets.  
  
Duncan ripped off his helmet and sat up to see Amber's body lying next to his, her helmet had been partially smashed during the fall. He tore the remaining part off and picked her up and shook her.  
  
"This isn't your first time doing that, is it?" Amber asked.  
  
"No it isn't," he replied.  
  
"That's what I thought," Amber said.  
  
"You allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm fine, boy, I never knew a window busted into that many pieces," Amber replied.  
  
"Maybe I better take you to the hospital to make sure," Duncan suggested.  
  
"Hold it, I don't need no hospital, no doctor, and I don't need no authorities coming after me, let's get out of here," Amber said.  
  
Joe came out of the center looking for Duncan.  
  
"Hey!" he yelled.  
  
"Uhoh!" Amber said.  
  
Amber got up and tried to runaway, but Duncan snagged the back of her jacket.  
  
"Hold it! He's a friend of mine," he told her.  
  
Amber looked back at Joe in confusion.  
  
"You call that mountain goat a friend? He's old enough to be your grandfather!" Amber said.  
  
"I'm still old enough to take you over my knee," Joe told her, "Hey, I was wondering how you were going to bust out of there. What'd you do?"  
  
"He stole a guard's motorcycle and------kaboom!" Amber said.  
  
"We have to get out of Russia as soon as possible, we got no rights being here," Joe said.  
  
"So? When has that ever stopped us before?" Duncan asked.  
  
"While you were out here being Evel Kinevel, I spoke with Mario on the phone and made a deal, I told him we'd meet him in London," Joe said.  
  
"That's where you sent me 2 days ago, why couldn't you have made the deal then?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because this guy's calling all the shots, it seems he's got everything planned," Joe explained.  
  
"Then why doesn't he come here and try to kill us?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Maybe I can explain that," Amber said, "a few years back, Mario got struck by lightning, now, not only does he have only half the memory of being an Immortal, but he also gets the radio weather station through his teeth."  
  
"This is ridiculous," Duncan said.  
  
"Tell you what Joe, you go check the airlines schedules for London, while Duncan and I go out to eat. The stuff they serve on that plane is worse than leather boots," Amber said.  
  
"Still think you can handle her?" Joe asked.  
  
"Believe me, I've dealt with worse," Duncan grunted through his teeth.  
  
Amber suggested they go to a diner down the street, Duncan agreed, but when he received his food, he wasn't so sure about it.  
  
"What's in this stuff?" he asked.  
  
"I don't know, but I wouldn't recommend asking the chef, this is a Russian diner, you ask about the food, they're bound to put a gun to your head while you eat," Amber said.  
  
"Two punishments for the price of one, first this posion, then death," Duncan replied.  
  
There was a tap at the front window, it was Joe.  
  
"Wonderful, I was wondering when he was going to get here, I can't stand the sight of this food anyway," Duncan said.  
  
"Well, I'll go pay the bill and we'll be on our way," Amber ran off.  
  
"So, what'd you find out?" Duncan asked.  
  
"The earliest flight heading to London is at 1:00," Joe said.  
  
"That's good, we'll be out of here in no time," Duncan thought.  
  
"Yeah, but then there's the bad news, we won't get to London until 2:00," Joe said.  
  
"One hour? That's fast," Duncan said.  
  
"No no no, it's not 2 in the afternoon, it's 2 in the morning," Joe told him.  
  
"WHAT? 13 hours? That's insane, I could swim there faster than that, this is an outrage! Why the hell is it taking so long?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Bad weather's coming up," Joe said.  
  
"Then they should've cancelled the flight," Duncan said.  
  
"They can't do that, there's too many demands to get out of Russia, it's too dangerous here," Joe told him.  
  
"I know, eating in this place is like having a last meal before being shot at dawn," Duncan replied.  
  
"What's going on here?" Amber asked.  
  
"The damn flight is going to take 13 hours to get to London, that's what!" Duncan exploded.  
  
"13 hours? We could swim there faster than that," Amber said.  
  
"Well, anybody got any better ideas?" Joe asked.  
  
"One, by the time we get to the water, it'll be well past an hour," Amber started.  
  
"Come on, let's just take the damn flight, I can't wait to get out of this place anyway," Duncan said, "at this rate, I don't care how long it takes."  
  
"You look like hell," Joe said.  
  
"I look better than I feel," Duncan replied.  
  
"Again I state, you look like HELL!" Joe told him.  
  
"Try spending 9 hours on a bumpy train in the middle of winter, going 39 miles, and sleeping on a 20 pound sack of potatoes and tell me if you feel like hell," Duncan told him.  
  
"Hey, it kept you busy until we needed you, didn't it?" Joe asked.  
  
"Yes, and the next time a Watcher tells me I should go somewhere to relax, I'm not listening," Duncan said.  
  
"Hey, how'd I know you'd have a terrible time?" Joe asked.  
  
"I got flat feet in Britain, I got pinched by a dozen lobsters and crabs in Europe, and I nearly got frostbitten in Swedan, other than that, I had a pleasant time. If it weren't for the fact I was Immortal and couldn't die from any of that, I'd kill you," Duncan said.  
  
"So I'm a bad travel agent, don't bite my head off," Joe replied.  
  
"I'd never be able to, you have too fat a neck," Duncan told him.  
  
"Hey, you think you had a terrible time? Try watching all of that, besides, it wasn't all that good for me either. I got sunburnt to blackened toast in Britain, I got slapped silly with hailbut in Europe cuz I didn't understand a word anybody said. And in Swedan, instead of snow, I wound up in 5 feet of mashed potatoes," Joe said.  
  
"Another thing, how come you disappeared off the train?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I had to be transported out of there first to make sure everything was going as planned before we could bring you in," Joe said.  
  
"What was this supposed to be? Some kind of surprise?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well.....In a way, yes," Joe said.  
  
"Fine, I'm surprised, next time let me know ahead of time," Duncan replied.  
  
So they boarded the plane, Duncan was steamed as a lobster over the past three days, but Amber looked more green than red.  
  
"Something wrong?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, I just remembered I never do well on airplanes," Amber said.  
  
"Maybe it was that lobster tail ala combat boot you ate before we headed down here," Duncan said.  
  
"I don't think so, that's all still in my throat, have you ever tried swallowing someone's shoelaces?" Amber asked, "That's exactly how they cook their lingeuinie."  
  
Well, the flight made better progress than expected, they reached London at 11:50 PM. They checked into a hotel for the night.  
  
"How come we're not going to see Mario?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because he hasn't stated where to meet him yet, we can't go charging in someplace we've never been to," Joe said.  
  
"Speak for yourself," Amber said.  
  
Half an hour later, Duncan came up to Joe's room to see where Amber was, he could hear someone vomiting in the bathroom. Joe sat on his bed reading a book with plugs in his ears.  
  
"Think you could take care of that problem? Sounds like the last opera I went to," Joe said.  
  
Duncan pounded on the door, rather than go in and probably end up sorry.  
  
"Amber are you allright?" he asked.  
  
"I will be in a minute," she called out.  
  
They heard the faucet at full blast, then Amber came out of the bathroom wiping her mouth with a towel.  
  
"What was that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm not sure, but I think it might've been food posioning from that diner in Russia. Do you have any idea what prussic acid looks like?" Amber asked.  
  
"Excuse us," Duncan said.  
  
He grabbed Amber by the collar of her jacket, took her into the bathroom and out the other door leading to their room.  
  
"Something wrong?" Amber asked.  
  
"If we're going to be meeting Mario soon, it might help if I knew what he looked like," Duncan told her.  
  
"Okay, well, he's about your height, about 40 pounds lighter, blonde spiky hair, bad complexion, and basically the outline of a five o' clock shadow, and whenever he opens his mouth on one end, you can hear the weather forcast for the weekend," Amber told him, "and one more thing, on the left side of his forehead there's a stitch, they had to seal up the hole after the lightning struck."  
  
"The lightning opened his head?" Duncan asked.  
  
"How else do you think he forgot half his mission as an Immortal?" Amber asked.  
  
"Why is it that it opened his forehead?" Duncan asked.  
  
"He wears a metal plate around his brain, so it not only attracts lightning, but if you hit him on the head with a cooking pot, he vibrates into the broom closet, and when you turn up the radio or TV, the sound vibrates off his skull," Amber said.  
  
"This is ridiculous now get into bed and shutup!" Duncan told her.  
  
"And I thought I had the lobsters at lunch," Amber said.  
  
Amber took a pillow off the bed and went over to a chair next to the door.  
  
"I told you to get into bed!" Duncan told her.  
  
"Forget it, I'm not sharing any bed with someone who's had lobsters piching at his tushie," Amber said.  
  
Amber pounded the pillow and drifted off to sleep in the chair, Duncan wound the alarm clock for 6:00, then he shut off the lights, and he too conked out.  
  
(This is the end of chapter one, hopefully I have 2 up soon.) 


	2. Getting Acquainted

Getting Acquainted  
  
Chapter 2 of Going My Way  
  
Disclaimer: Same as last time.  
  
Sergeant Henderson dropped the files on the table.  
  
"This is all I could dig up on him," he said.  
  
Duncan picked up the files and skimmed it.  
  
"That's what I thought, I've been trying to track him down for a while, I've got a score to settle with him," he said.  
  
"Did you know him well?" Sergeant Henderson asked.  
  
"Not very, but it's all I needed to know about him," Duncan replied.  
  
"Hope it'll help you find him," Sergeant Henderson said.  
  
"I'm sure it will, I'll have him tracked down in no time," Duncan replied.  
  
"My sentiments exactly."  
  
Duncan turned around as Mario came up to him and beheaded him.  
  
Duncan shot up in the bed, it was just a crazy nightmare, but after he woke up, he heard someone, he turned on the lights and realized Amber was talking in her sleep. However, she was too far away for him to make out anything she said, so he walked over to her, apparently she was busy with a nightmare of her own.   
  
"...There he is...it can't be...he's killing him....he's killing him...he's gone...we've lost him....we've..."  
  
Duncan figured it was safe to assume her nightmare was starring Mario as well, he shook her to wake her up, but it didn't work, so he tried a little harder, this time it got to her.  
  
"What---what----oh it's you, something else I did?" Amber asked.  
  
"No, I thought I'd wake you up, it sounded like you were having the same dream I was," Duncan said.  
  
"Not quite I don't think, but I can't tell you, you wouldn't have the slightest idea of what I'd try to say," Amber replied, "wait a minute, there's something wrong here. THe last time we spoke to each other, you were ready to snap my neck with your teeth. For 3 in the morning, I thought you'd be even crabbier than that!"  
  
"That bad, huh?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I've slept with live seafood with claws and pinchers that're friendlier than you," Amber told him.  
  
"Look, I'm sorry I yelled at you, the last three days around here have been complete hell for me, and I don't quite imagine they'd be any better for you," he said.  
  
"Well, for once you got one right," Amber sighed.  
  
Duncan started laughing, Amber figured it was probably at himself.  
  
"What?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan could see that she was not amused in the least and rather upset.  
  
"Oh.......No...It's just that this is the second day that we've been together, and I don't know the first thing about you," he realized.  
  
"Well I think I know all I need to know about you," Amber said.  
  
"Joe said the other day, it would be best if we didn't split up, incase Mario comes across one of us and not the other," Duncan told her.  
  
"This is ridiculous," Amber said, "forget it."  
  
Amber got up to leave, Duncan grabbed her and stopped her.  
  
"No, really, I am sorry, you'll have to excuse me, I don't do too well when meeting people, I've already lost a lot of people I knew, after 400 years, you get pretty tired of it," Duncan said, "now could we just try and talk without trying to behead each other?"  
  
"Allright, let's start with you," she said.  
  
"If it'll get the ball rolling," Duncan agreed.  
  
"Where you from?" Amber asked.  
  
"Scotland," he replied.  
  
"What year?"  
  
"1592."  
  
"407 years huh? Age doesn't seem to slow you down," Amber said.  
  
"The last three days, Joe Dawson sent me out on a wild goose chase, so I couldn't say 'no' to your arrival," Duncan started.  
  
"The last three days ain't been all that good for me either, getting poked and prodded like a cow, shoved onto a hijacked aircraft coming to one of the most dangerous regions in the world, meeting you, getting knocked out, and having to put up with everything in between," Amber explained.  
  
"I guess we have more in common than we thought, we both have a terrible time meeting someone," Duncan laughed.  
  
"Maybe so, but I'll say this much, I can't wait for it to be over," Amber said.  
  
Duncan stared at Amber for the longest time.  
  
"What?" Amber asked.  
  
"I was just thinking, there's something screwy in this whole damn plan," Duncan said.  
  
"Really? What do you think?" Amber asked.  
  
"I think everything I've heard about you so far is a lie," Duncan said.  
  
"Everything except my rap sheet," Amber replied.  
  
"You sound proud of it," Duncan said.  
  
"Why shouldn't I? It's the only truthful thing I can go by," she said.  
  
"But 14 pages of..."  
  
"14? Oh yeah, I forgot, I tore off the other 3 sheets so the doctors in that center in Russia wouldn't see them," Amber said.  
  
She pulled the papers out of her pocket and handed them to Duncan, 5 counts of assault and battery 14 of grand theft auto, and 3 of murder.  
  
"3 murders?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, that was around the time that this whole Immortal thing was supposed to have taken place, not really something I'm proud of," Amber said.  
  
"How come?" Duncan asked.  
  
"The first two murders were these people called Watchers, they have these strange purple tattoos on their wrists. The third one was an accident of an innocent bystander of a mortal," Amber told him.  
  
"Are you serious?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, and the whole time, there's this other guy always coming out of the shadows, Methos or something, I don't remember," Amber said.  
  
"Methos?"  
  
"Yeah, I think so, I don't remember," Amber replied.  
  
"Did you know him well?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Not really, he just seemed to crawl out of the shadows every time a murder took place, he'd start this crazy mumbo jumbo about the Watchers coming after my head if I didn't watch it," Amber said.  
  
"No kidding, sounds like him," Duncan said.  
  
"You know him?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yes, he's an Immortal," Duncan told her.  
  
"Friend of yours?" Amber asked, "he told me about one Watcher I should watch out for, his name was Adam....Adam..."  
  
"Adam Pierson?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No wonder Mario thinks I know you, you know all the psychos I do," Amber said.  
  
"Adam Pierson AND Methos?" Duncan asked.  
  
"You know them?" Amber asked.  
  
"Know them? Methos IS Adam Pierson!" Duncan exclaimed.  
  
"Are you serious?" Joe asked the next day.  
  
"I'm not kidding you, she said she killed two Watchers, and each time Methos warned her about the Watchers," Duncan replied.  
  
"Where is the old bag anyway?" Joe asked.  
  
"I beg your pardon, I thought you were talking about me," Pierson stepped out from around the corner.  
  
"You looking to get your head blown off? If not, I wouldn't recommend doing that again," Duncan told him.  
  
"So what are you two talking about that you had to discuss in 10 below weather?" Adam asked.  
  
"What do you know about a girl called Amber Jenzon?" Joe asked him.  
  
"Can't say I know too much about her, all I did was warn her if she was caught by more than one of the Watchers, she'd never get out, they'd take her head and then some," Adam said.  
  
"Then why didn't you try and kill her? You're both an Immortal and a Watcher," Duncan said.  
  
"I couldn't kill her, she's not an Immortal, at least I don't think," Adam replied.  
  
"You don't think?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'll have to check, we keep records of all Watchers who are murdered, it could be that one of them was like me," Adam said.  
  
What he meant was it was possible Amber killed an Immortal and didn't even know it because he was a Watcher.  
  
"Well, while you do that, I'll see if I can get anything else out of her," Duncan said.  
  
Duncan returned to the hotel, and found Amber packing her suitcase.  
  
"What're you doing?" he asked.  
  
"I'm packing."  
  
"Did Mario call?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No," Amber replied, "I just figured it'd be better if I was ready incase of anything."  
  
"Did you travel a lot?" Duncan asked.  
  
"A bit," Amber responded.  
  
"I suppose you did a lot with your father," Duncan said.  
  
"My father?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan didn't say anything, Amber stood silent for a minute, then she started crying. Duncan's stomach turned with guilt, he put his arms around her and tried to console her. Just then, Amber got a terrible look on her face, she broke out of his hold, ran into the bathroom and shut the door. Duncan could hear her throwing up, a few minutes later, Amber came out.  
  
"I'm sorry Amber, I didn't mean to..."  
  
"It's allirght, I'm used to it by now," Amber said.  
  
"Amber, your parents were killed four years ago, but they didn't die in an accident, did they?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, that's what everyone said, but there was too much evidence to prove that it was intentional, so the police closed the case," Amber replied.  
  
The phone rang, Duncan answered...  
  
"Hello."  
  
"Who is this?" he asked.  
  
"Mario Venvetta, I've been waiting for you Duncan MacLeod."  
  
"Yeah? Well I've been waiting for you too, I want to make a few things clear before we meet, stay away from Amber Jenzon, she's not your enemy, I am," Duncan said.  
  
"That's where you're wrong, MacLeod, she is my enemy because she came in contact with you, anyone who befriends you has to answer to me."  
  
"And why is that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I won't rest until you and everyone you love is dead, my revenge will be ever so sweet."  
  
"And why exactly is that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because you killed my father, now I kill you."  
  
"Allright, listen, you may have this whole thing planned out, but I'm calling the shots now. Meet us in Philidelphia in two days, or else we'll be holding a scavenger hunt for your skeleton, and the last piece will be your skull," Duncan said.  
  
"You drive a hard bargain MacLeod, but I'll be glad to meet it, anything if it means your head," Mario replied.  
  
Duncan hung up, and started packing his suitcase.  
  
"What'd you do that for?" Amber asked.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Why'd you tell him to meet us in Philidelphia?" Amber asked.  
  
"Because, I believe in killing 2 birds with 1 stone, and I have another score to settle down there," Duncan replied.  
  
Duncan arranged for them to catch the next plane heading to Pennsylvania.  
  
"Hmmmm, looks nice and private," Duncan said.  
  
"What do you expect when you book a flight that's heading out at noon?" Joe asked.  
  
Duncan looked over at Amber, she didn't seem too thrilled about heading over to Philidelphia.  
  
"This seat taken?" he asked.  
  
"No," she replied.  
  
"Something wrong?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No," she replied.  
  
Duncan could tell there was something wrong, she tried not to let it show, but it looked like she was starting to cry again.  
  
"I don't know if you know this yet, but one of the reasons we've heading over to Pennslyvania is because I intend to find out the real cause of your parents' death," he told her.  
  
"What? Why?" Amber asked.  
  
"Because I think there is a fine line of a connection between that, and Mario's vendetta against me," Duncan replied.  
  
"Well, before we arrive, I think there's something you should know about Mario, something I haven't told you yet," Amber started.  
  
Duncan listened silently, staring at her.  
  
"Well, I knew Mario a bit before this whole thing got out of control, we were rivals, but not as bad as its gotten. I remember, I was always obnoxious when I went to see him, he was always so dead serious. I was a bit of a joker at the time, one time, it carried a bit too far, he was working on some kind of experiment, and he asked me to hand him a beaker of a cold liquid, but I hung it over a lab burner for a few minutes before I handed it to him. The beaker smashed in his hand, the liquid was at temperature 139 Farrenheit, he kept his hand, but now it's severely scarred from the burn," Amber explained.  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"You know how you get scraped up and the infected area turns a greenish-orange? That's exactly the way his right hand looks today, that's why I think he's so angry at me, but you, I don't know what his problem is with you. I don't have a problem with you and I've been with you for two days, he he's never met you," Amber said.  
  
"On the phone, he said he's after me because I killed his father," Duncan said.  
  
"And did you?" Amber asked.  
  
"No, no, no of course not, I don't kill people, I defeat Immortals," Duncan replied.  
  
"Maybe that's it, maybe you took on his father during a match and did it because he was an Immortal," Amber replied.  
  
"Impossible, Immortals cannot have children," Duncan told her.  
  
"Well, is it possible before you became Immortal, you got into a fight with him and killed him to save your own life?" Amber asked.  
  
"Why do you ask so many questions?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Hey, last night you were yelling at me because I was giving you so many answers!" Amber replied.  
  
"And ridiculous ones at that, a metal plate in his head, radio stations through his teeth, vibrating into the broom closet," Duncan stated.  
  
"He doesn't get a lot of radio stations through his teeth, I told you it's just the weather station, that is, unless he makes one side of his mouth higher than the other, then he gets the exterminator's advertisement program," Amber told him.  
  
Duncan couldn't help but laugh at that, it seemed that he couldn't win the fight with Amber, when they reached Pennsylvania, he looked up the antique store where the crash took place. It looked rather eerie, no one was in the store except for the manager, Keith Stamos.  
  
(This is the end of chapter 2, I'll have 3 up shortly.) 


	3. Speculation Fills the Air

Speculation Fills the Air  
  
Chapter 3 of Going My Way?  
  
Disclaimer: You should know by now...  
  
"Can I help you?" Keith asked.  
  
"Yes, maybe you can," Duncan replied, "I need to talk to you about something..."  
  
"I'm sorry, I'm not..."  
  
"I need some information for a friend of mine, Amber Jenzon," Duncan said.  
  
"Oh, well, what do you want to know?" Keith asked.  
  
"Let's talk dates," Duncan suggested, "June 14th 1995."  
  
"Ohhhhhh, that wasn't a good day," Keith said.  
  
"I know, Jennifer and Ryan Jenzon were killed in an accident when their car turned off the road and crashed into this store, a freak accident that left the town talking," Duncan said.  
  
"Sure, that's what they'd like you to think," Keith said.  
  
"I beg your pardon?" Duncan asked.  
  
"The police didn't want to do any heavy investigating so they closed the case, but I know what really happened," Keith told him.  
  
"Really? Do tell," he said.  
  
"The death of the Jenzons was murder, no accident, I know. August 13th, a guy comes in and says he's trying to do away with these two people, up to some illegal operation, I figure, maybe they running with the mob. I ask him if he's got any ideas how to do 'em in, he suggests running them off the road. I ask him, if he's got a way of doing it without getting caught in the act, he says, the only way to do it is to vandalize the vehicle, so it'll appear good until they need to use their brakes. This guy's majored in mechanics, so I make a few suggestions that the police could never detect. He says the car will crash around 10 in the morning. I say to him, if you're gonna make them crash, you better make it so neither one of us will get caught, if I get caught, your next. So, he decides to crash the car in the store's front window, after all, why would the police think to question the guy who runs the store of where the death took place? That'd be like hanging myself, so 10 o' clock comes, no crash. I figure, it's a slight delay they'll be along soon, then by 10:13, up comes the car in flames. The guy phones the police from the booth 2 streets back cuz the flames are filling the sky, it's a quiet day, so no one sees the crash as it happens. But by 10:15, everybody's running up asking the police what happened," Keith explained.  
  
"And did you see their daughter that day?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, she got down here too late to see the morgue take the bodies away, she started to lose it, she tried throwing herself into the flames to end it all. The police pull her out, but she's left with 3rd degree burns on her hands and arms up to her elbows," Keith said.  
  
"Tell me, did you know who the person was?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No idea, I don't even remember what he looked like, all I remember is he had stitches in his right hand," Keith said.  
  
"Let me ask you another question, what would drive a 12-year-old to kill?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Why do you ask?"  
  
"Rumors have it shortly after the Jenzons' death, the daughter went on a killing spree and murdered 3 people," Duncan said.  
  
"That's hard to say, it only brings one to the question of why anyone murders at all. There are a few killers who kill for the fun of it, others are mentally damaged and have no recollection of committing the murders, letalone why they did them. Other times, its anyone's guess, a done deal, blackmail, a carried out threat, or maybe a vendetta," Keith told him.  
  
"Anyone who would murder without a reason would have to be deranged," Duncan realized.  
  
"Exactly, that's why everybody panics when a mental patient breaks loose, or a convict escapes prison," Keith said.  
  
"I think I'll be leaving now, I think you've been a great deal of help," Duncan said.  
  
At that time, in came another person, he came right up to the counter, and right next to Duncan.  
  
"Ah, you seem like a rather smart and sober fellow, who're you?" he asked.  
  
Duncan thought for a minute, this guy wasn't worth the truth, so...  
  
"No Englis'h," he said, as he backed out of the antique store.  
  
Duncan walked down the sidewalk and came to the corner where Amber waited outside a restaurant.  
  
"Well?" she asked.  
  
"Come on," Duncan said.  
  
They took off, once they got a ways away from the block.  
  
"The antique store's manager is tied in with the murder, he says the guy came in the day before and had to do away with them. He mentioned that the man had a stitch on his right hand, you know of any time Mario had stitches? Other than the ones on his forehead I mean?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, he had several doctors with different opinions examine his hand, but he never had stitches," Amber said.  
  
Just then, Duncan and Amber bumped into another man on the street.  
  
"Excuse me," all three of them said.  
  
Duncan turned around and grabbed the man by the shoulders.  
  
"Methos," he said.  
  
"Hello Duncan, sight seeing again?" Methos asked.  
  
"You again? I thought I saw the last of you long ago," Amber said.  
  
"You're working with her?" Methos asked.  
  
"That's right, and right now we're in the middle of an operation bigger than all of us," Duncan said.  
  
"Well why should you worry? You're an Immortal, what's the worst they can do? The worst that can happen is they'll slip and cut off your head," Methos said.  
  
Duncan grabbed Methos by his jacket collar and pinned him against the building wall.  
  
"Not a medical operation you idiot, a murder operation!" he said.  
  
Duncan put him down and put his arm around his neck as a signal to follow him as they continued down the street.  
  
"Well why should you worry about that either? It's not your problem," Methos told him.  
  
"No, but it just might turn into that, the vendetta this guy's got against me's connected with a murder that took place four years ago, in order to solve both problems, I have to find out about one person," Duncan said.  
  
"Well what do you want me to do?" Methos asked.  
  
"Go to the pawn shop on the corner and find a good camera, I want you to get pictures of the entire area from where 3rd street ends and the highway begins, I have an idea," Duncan said.  
  
"I say, that's quite a bit of coverage isn't it?" Methos asked.  
  
"It's the only way to solve this whole matter," Duncan said.  
  
"And exactly where are you going to be while I'm shooting the whole town?" Methos asked.  
  
"I'm going to check out the morgue," Duncan said.  
  
"I say, they get rid of the bodies within a few days, this is four years we're talking about," Methos told him.  
  
"Not the hospital morgue, the newspaper morgue, I have an idea I know where to find what I'm looking for," Duncan said.  
  
"Well, let's go," Amber suggested.  
  
"Hold it, we can go, if you stay out of it," Duncan told her.  
  
"What good will that do? This is my town, I'm the one that knows my way around here," Amber said.  
  
"Good, then while I'm checking out the morgue, you find a place where we can lay low for the next two days, we need to draw as little attention to ourselves as possible," Duncan advised her.  
  
"No problem, on the way over here, I passed by an apartment that's for rent, and I think we can get a good view of the town from it," Amber said.  
  
"How many floors?" Duncan asked.  
  
"30."  
  
"And which floor is the apartment on?" Duncan asked.  
  
"The 17th."  
  
"No good, go and find an apartment on the top floor, the only way anyone can come in from above is the ceiling, and I'm for keeping it that way," Duncan said.  
  
That night, it was going on 11:30, Duncan had found some newspaper articles at the morgue he was sure fit in with the whole murder case. Around that time, Methos came in screaming for him.  
  
"Will you shutup? You want want wake up the whole building? What is it?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I got the pictures developed, 16 rolls, have you ever tried going through 16 rolls in one day?" Methos asked.  
  
"Never mind that, listen, I was doing some research on the Jenzons' past, now, Mister and Misses Jenzon were co-workers in a business, that I believe is located on 27th street, the Mudgett Pharmacy," Duncan said.  
  
Methos laid out several pictures of 27th Street, including the pharmacy.  
  
"Not exactly the million dollar business is it?" Methos asked.  
  
"Not quite, more like a total of $756,000 a year," Duncan replied.  
  
"Seems like a rather normal business, no reason to get bumped off," Methos said.  
  
"That's what everyone seemed to think, but look at this."  
  
Duncan took out a picture from an old newspaper, it had men in gangster suits unloading large boxes from armored cars into a building with a giant sign above called The Rivera Garage, the same building as the pharmacy!  
  
"Well what do you know," Methos said.  
  
"Yes, turns out that around 1959, when the zipguns were new arrivals, the West Coast Tarantulas, then an underground mob, would unload thousands of dollars worth of illegal weapons, ammunition, explosives, including around 200 zipguns, and $350,000 of stolen money. Somehow they managed to hide it well enough no one ever found out, now, it's only natural to assume that they stole so much, they couldn't use it all before they were sent up the river. Which leads to the theory that there was still some of the stolen properties in the building when it became the pharmacy in 1974," Duncan explained.  
  
"It is a strong possibility," Methos agreed.  
  
"Yes, also, I did some looking into the Jenzons' past, they lived in a house at 362 South 5th Street."  
  
Duncan took out more pictures from the stack and put them side by side on the table, sort of recreating the scene of the crime.  
  
"And what theory are you trying to reach here?" Methos asked.  
  
"There's a 22 block range from their house and the pharmacy, now the antique store where the crash took place, is located in the middle of 15th street," Duncan said.  
  
He took out the first four pictures of 15th Street and placed them in between the other two rows.  
  
"And what are you trying to say?" Methos asked.  
  
"The manager of the store said the man who planned all this called the police from the phone booth 2 blocks back, which would be on 13th street," Duncan explained, "but..."  
  
Duncan turned over other pictures of 15th, revealing a phone booth right at its corner, but going over all the pictures for 13th street, there was no phone booth.  
  
"So he was sure there was a crash before anyone else noticed," Methos said, "for an Immortal, you make a damn good detective."  
  
"Now, the next thing to it is, the Jenzons' shift started at 10:20, meaning they had to get there with time to spare. The manager of the antique store said he was told the crash would be around 10:00 in the morning. Now, at this time, they probably would've already gotten to 20th Street, but he said the crash was delayed to 10:13. If the Jenzons' were in such a hurry to get to the pharmacy, they would not have taken a detour through 15th Street, as it would have just slowed them down," Duncan explained.  
  
"Is that all?" Methos asked.  
  
"Not quite, he told me that when Amber got to the sight too late, she became suicidal and threw herself into the fire, severely burning her arms. However, I have seen just about every square inch of her body, and there are no scars on her anywhere, and there's one more problem here," Duncan said.  
  
"What is that?" Methos asked.  
  
"When we were in London, Mario wasn't there, the way Immortals know, like a 6th sense, I never had the slightest proof he was there. Nor has he been here since we arrived, which leads me to believe he was somewhere else at the time," Duncan said.  
  
"So that's the answer, someone's lying here," Methos said.  
  
"Not just someone, Methos...Everyone is," Duncan replied.  
  
Duncan froze for a minute, his eyes wide open.  
  
"What is it?" Methos asked.  
  
"Can't you tell? It's Mario, he's in town," Duncan said.  
  
The phone rang, it was Mario again.  
  
"Everything's been arranged, meet me at 169 W. 27th Street at 12:30, and don't be late, or else you not only lose your head, you lose everything and everyone... One more thing, bring Amber Jenzon with you," he said.  
  
With that, Mario hung up, now the bomb was ticking, they had to be at the pharmacy at the deadline or else Mario had his own plans for a scavenger hunt.  
  
(This is the end of chapter 3, I'll have 4 up soon.) 


	4. Closing In

Closing In  
  
Chapter 4  
  
Duncan went into Amber's bedroom and shook her to wake her up.  
  
"What is it?" she asked.  
  
"Mario just called, he told us to meet him, we don't have much time," Duncan said.  
  
"Where's he want us to meet him?" Amber asked.  
  
As they walked into the building, Duncan went over the details with Amber.  
  
"Allright, while I settle the score with Mario, you stay with Methos over by the corner," Duncan told her.  
  
"How do I know he won't turn into Adam Pierson when I'm with him?" Amber asked.  
  
"I beg your pardon, I am Adam Pierson a Watcher, not Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde," Methos told her.  
  
"If we survive the night, there's a few things I want to ask you about him," Amber mumbled to Duncan.  
  
Red lights came on all over the building, Methos walked over to the corner with Amber beside him, Duncan stood silent as Mario entered the front room. Duncan was shocked, he looked nothing like Amber described, he stood about 6'2, 140 pounds, green eyes, short curly reddish orange hair, the only thing about him that was the same was his hand.  
  
"Well, Duncan MacLeod, I'm surprised you decided to show up," he said.  
  
"It's not like I had a choice, it was either this or one of us is going to be washed up off the street at 8:00 AM," Duncan replied.  
  
Duncan pulled his sword out of his jacket and was ready to split Mario down the middle and then hack off his head. Apparently Mario had other plans, he disappeared into thin air, and reappeared to stick Duncan against the wall. He thrusted his sword in through the back of Duncan's coat and pinned him against the wall.  
  
"Too bad, I was hoping to have you disembowled before this was over," Mario said.  
  
"I guarantee you, it's just only begun," Duncan replied.  
  
Duncan held his sword just half an inch away from Mario's nose, Mario jerked his sword out of the wall and swung at him again. However, Duncan was able to cut him off at every swing. Finally, Duncan got the upper hand and thrusted his sword in through Mario's stomach, slowing him down. As Amber watched in horror, she got an idea, unfortunately, she slipped in the process. As she fell, she yanked a gun out of her coat pocket and fired, it narrowly missed both Mario and Duncan, but when the shots ended and Duncan turned around, Mario was gone.  
  
"I don't get it," Duncan said, "what's the matter with him? Why did he run?"  
  
"Why did he run?" Amber asked, "Duncan, this is a handheld automatic machine gun, do you know what the hell that means? 28 shots in 2 seconds, you can cut down trees with that kind of force, which means he was worried it would've taken his head."  
  
"Why should he worry? Apparently his head's thicker than any tree stump in the forest," Duncan said.  
  
"I don't know and right now I don't care, all I can say is I can't wait for this to end," Amber replied.  
  
Amber unlocked the apartment door and slipped in ahead of Duncan and Methos, the whole apartment was pitch black.  
  
"Funny, I don't remember leaving it this dark when we left," Duncan said.  
  
They heard Amber yell from the kitchen, they ran in to see her holding her gun to Joe's head.  
  
"Is this the welcome committee?" Joe sarcastically asked.  
  
"That's a good way to get your head blown off Dawson!" Amber said.  
  
"I'll have to recommend it to Mario," Joe said.  
  
"Don't you tell me you know him too!" Amber exclaimed.  
  
"Of course not, I can't stand the sight of that guy, it's enough to make me sick," Joe replied.  
  
"Yeah, I'm getting the feeling," Amber said.  
  
"And where have you been?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Have you forgotten? I'm a Watcher, meaning I don't interfere with anything you do," Joe told him.  
  
"I remember that, but where were you today when we came here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I've just been watching, but from a view," he said.  
  
"That's not the best way to spy on someone, in fact it's a good way to get thrown off the roof, Joe, you should try it more often," Amber said.  
  
"That does it you two, Joe, you stay here and shutup, Amber, you follow me."  
  
Duncan grabbed Amber by the arm and went into the back bedroom.  
  
"You want we should try it on the bed or standing up?" Amber asked.  
  
"Will you stop it? Amber, what is this grudge between you and Joe? You never even met him until the other day," Duncan said.  
  
"I know, and in that short of time, I can already tell you I don't like him, something about him that gets on my last nerve," Amber replied.  
  
"Is that any reason to tell him to get thrown off the roof of some building?" Duncan asked.  
  
The phone rang, Duncan answered, but he already knew who it was.  
  
"What do you want Mario?" he asked.  
  
"You screwed up beyond belief MacLeod, meet me at Geraldo's Garage at 12:15 tomorrow night, and be sure to be Amber Jenzon with you," he said.  
  
"And if I don't?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Then you wake up with her head on the next pillow over, I'll be waiting," Mario said.  
  
Then Mario hung up, Duncan wasn't quite sure he got what Mario just said.  
  
"This guy's got a real sick sense of humor," Duncan said.  
  
"I know, that's it for him for a good time, beheading people and Mafia films," Amber told him.  
  
"Well, he obviously knows his way around the town, he wants us to meet him at Geraldo's Garage tomorrow night, and he advised me to bring you," Duncan said.  
  
"I know...Duncan, there's something I want to ask you," Amber said.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"A few years ago, there was a short lived war between the Immortals and the Watchers, so how is it that Methos is an Immortal and a Watcher at the same time?" Amber asked.  
  
"You'd be surprised about some people," Duncan said.  
  
"Well then I have another question, he's already two people in one, is it possible there's a third one rolling around in there somewhere?" Amber asked.  
  
"Like who?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Like a punk kid named Richie Ryan," Amber said.  
  
Duncan wasn't about to ask how she knew Richie, he was sure that answer would pop up soon enough, so...  
  
"No he's not, that's an entirely different person, and as far as I know, there's only one of him in him," Duncan told her.  
  
"That's good," Amber said, "what are you going to do about Mario?"  
  
"I don't know, he's a real pain in the neck, personally I'd like to get rid of his," Duncan said.  
  
"Well you better make sure you show up tomorrow night," Amber said.  
  
"And why is that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because, he threatened to make sure something happened if you didn't, I know he did, he always threatens people, and he always carries them out, you better believe it," Amber said.  
  
Duncan could tell Amber was growing uneasy, but it was more than he'd seen before.  
  
"How come?" he asked.  
  
Amber slowly backed up to the wall and started crying.  
  
"The last time I saw him was shortly after his accident, and he threatened to come after me, he said he'd make sure I never forgot what happened...he told me he saw to it that I paid for what I did to him... And....one day he did, he jumped me in a dark alley, and he dragged me around to an empty building. He made sure no one could hear me, then he threw me on the floor, and he started...for two hours, he wouldn't stop, I tried to get away, I tried to stop him....but he was reluntless, he wouldn't stop....."  
  
Amber sunk down to the floor and became hysterical, Duncan walked over to her and picked her up, and tried to console her, it was no wonder she'd been so mean lately, nor was it a wonder why she was so nauseous the last couple days. The thought of coming in contact with someone like that after something like that was probably enough to make anyone sick. Within time, Amber wore down and Duncan was able to take her to her room and put her in bed, when he turned around, he was in for a surprise when he ran into Methos.  
  
"Is it safe to come in or shall I call the Exorcist?" he asked.  
  
"Very funny, I suppose you heard," Duncan said.  
  
"Part of it, how long did she keep up?" Methos asked.  
  
"I'm not sure, my guess is around an hour and a half, you have no idea how glad I am she finally wore out, for a while, I wasn't sure what I was going to do," Duncan said.  
  
"Well, what are you going to do?" Methos asked.  
  
"I know this much, I'm going to see Mario tomorrow night, and if everything goes according to plan, it'll be the last time I see him," Duncan said.  
  
"Can you be sure of that?" Methos asked.  
  
"Right now I'm not too sure of anything, although after what she explained, I know he's deathly true to his word," Duncan replied.  
  
Methos and Duncan slipped downstairs so they could discuss something else in private.  
  
"So, any news on the Watcher murders?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Not yet, we haven't been able to find out which ones she killed," Methos replied.  
  
Duncan let out a slight laugh.  
  
"What?" Methos asked.  
  
"I'm just wondering if this is what it's like to be a parent, always worrying, always considering the worst, always ending up exhausted night after night, pretty ridiculous, I can't imagine enduring it every day for 18 years," Duncan said.  
  
"I think I'll turn in for the night," Methos said.  
  
"Oh, into what?" Duncan asked.  
  
"One thing about you that never changes, your sense of humor, I'm waiting for the day that it disappears altogether," Methos said.  
  
Methos headed upstairs, Duncan went through the pictures on the table again, for some reason, he figured he could find something else in the pictures. He turned over a picture of a 13 story building on 10th Street, and something caught his eye, he looked closer, Joe was standing on the roof watching someone. But at the time, Duncan wasn't there, so who was he watching?  
  
By morning, he was still puzzled over the picture, he couldn't think of what kind of possibility there could've been for it. Amber quickly and quietly came down the stairs.  
  
"Have you been staring at those pictures all night?" she asked.  
  
"No, just going over a few things, how are you?" he asked.  
  
"Fine, did I keep you up last night?" Amber asked.  
  
"No, although I'm not too sure about Methos, come to think of it, right now I'm not even sure if it's Methos," Duncan said.  
  
"What're you looking at anyway?" Amber asked.  
  
"Remember when Dawson said he was watching from a view yesterday?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, so?"  
  
"Well here he is..."  
  
"Sure, there he is, but you're not in the picture," Amber said.  
  
"I know."  
  
"So who was he watching?"  
  
"Exactly," Duncan replied.  
  
"If you ask me, this whole thing is crazy," Amber said.  
  
"I agree, so, you think you're up for a round of bloody death tonight?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What choice do I have?" Amber asked, "Besides, if you need backup, you got it, I'll blow his freaking head off if I have to."  
  
Amber pulled the automatic out of her pocket and pointed it at Duncan.  
  
"I figured I might need it tonight so I refilled it incase Mario gets the upper hand tonight," Amber said.  
  
"You know Amber, had this been two days ago, I probably would've slapped you across the face and into the wall, but now I know we're stuck working together," Duncan said.  
  
"I thought you liked me," Amber sarcastically sighed.  
  
"Hmmmmmmmmmmm."  
  
"What?" Amber asked.  
  
"It's amazing how much we're alike," Duncan said.  
  
"I guess," Amber replied.  
  
"You allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, just tired, I've been putting up with Mario Venvetta for over 4 years, and quite frankly it's getting tired," Amber said.  
  
"Hey, listen, we're going over there to meet with Mario tonight, I promise, I don't care what happens, I'm not going to let him get you," Duncan told her.  
  
"How come you going through all this trouble for me? I ain't got nothing to repay you by," Amber said.  
  
"Think of it as a favor between friends," Duncan suggested.  
  
11:50 rolled up, Duncan wanted to get a jump on Mario early, so they headed over to Geraldo's Garage.  
  
"Some gargage, 9 floors," Amber said.  
  
"He could've told us what floor to meet him on," Methos said.  
  
"Why're you talking like the godfather?" Amber asked.  
  
"It's the night air, you try breathing it," Methos said.  
  
"You ain't gotta tell me, I grew up here, garbage trucks driving by at 2 in the morning, street sweepers at 7, semis, hearses and Cadillacs in between, its a wonder anyone can breathe in this town without talking like a frog," Amber replied.  
  
Amber noticed Duncan was messing around with what looked like the fusebox.  
  
"What're you doing?" Amber asked.  
  
"Listen," Duncan said.  
  
He flipped a switch, turning on a wire which allowed them to hear Mario from the top floor, apparently he wasn't alone, Duncan flipped the switch off again and turned around.  
  
"I'd say we know where to meet him," Duncan said.  
  
"Top floor," Methos added.   
  
So they stepped off the elevator at the 9th floor, Mario was already waiting for them.  
  
"So you arrived," Mario said.  
  
"I said I'd come and I did," Duncan said.  
  
"I see you also held up the other part of the bargain," Mario said, looking to the back at Amber.  
  
"What exactly do you think he has planned?" Methos asked.  
  
"I don't know, but if he starts getting the upper hand, me and this Cobray M 9/11 will make it fatal for Mario," Amber replied, pulling her automatic out of her pocket.  
  
As Mario reached for his sword, Duncan pinned him to the wall with his.  
  
"Before we begin," Duncan said, "why did you want me to bring her?"  
  
"I just wanted to make sure there wouldn't be such a long difference between your death....and hers," Mario said.  
  
Mario pulled out his sword, swung at Duncan and narrowly missed his throat. Duncan swung at Mario and almost opened his head, but Mario's sword clashed with his. It was then that Duncan found out that Mario was a lot stronger than he made people believe, Mario swung and knocked Duncan for a loop, and knocked him on the floor. Mario stood on his stomach and placed his sword at Duncan's neck.  
  
"This is where it ends, MacLeod," Mario told him.  
  
Shots rang out from the other side of the room, Amber basically emptied her Cobray into Mario's right arm, and his stomach. Within 3 seconds, her gun was empty, Mario jumped and pinned her against the wall, he squeezed her hand so hard it turned blue as she dropped the gun.  
  
"That does it, this ends with you first," he said.  
  
As Mario got ready for Amber's beheading, shots rang out again, this time from the top window. It was an Intertec .22 long rifle 15 shots at Mario, by the time he turned around again, Amber had hers reloaded. The figure at the window accidentally shot at an open box marked EXPLOSIVES. However, all he shot was a few tear gas bombs, when the gas started to clear, Mario was gone, again. Duncan ran over to Amber to make sure she was allright, when he found her, she seemed okay.  
  
"What a rush.....Duncan, who in the hell was that?" Amber asked.  
  
"So it's true, an old foe never dies, they just end up like hell," the figure said.  
  
At the time, no one could tell who it was becasue the shadows overthrew him, but Duncan knew one thing for sure, he was an Immortal.  
  
"Who are you? And if you're already so acquainted with us, why don't you come down here and show us just who the hell you are?" Duncan asked.  
  
The figure disappeared, a scrap of paper fell to Amber's foot. She picked it up and read it, it read: It has come down to this, meet me in England by the 21st, I know who you are so don't bother hiding, I'm coming after you, you will not get away this time. An old rival.  
  
(This is it for 4, I'll have 5 up soon.) 


	5. My Secret Enemy

My Secret Enemy  
  
Duncan, Methos and Amber headed back to their apartment.  
  
"Amber are you okay? You've been quiet for the last hour," Duncan said.  
  
"Huh? Oh, I'm fine, I'm just tired, I'm going to bed, I'll see you in the morning," she said.  
  
Methos waited until Amber went upstairs to speak with Duncan.  
  
"I think there's more to it than just that, look at this."  
  
Methos handed Duncan the same note.  
  
"Where'd you get this?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It fell out of her pocket on the way out of the garage, who do you think its from?" Methos asked.  
  
"My guess would be machine gun john doe from the garage, I wonder who he is," Duncan said.  
  
"It's anyone's guess," Methos said.  
  
"Yes, that's true, what's today?" Duncan asked.  
  
"The 15th," Methos replied.  
  
"Well, my guess is we better get started if we're going to catch the next plane heading to England," Duncan said.  
  
Duncan took the letter, and went up to Joe's room and turned on the lights.  
  
"Dahhh! Come on nurse, I'm not dead yet," Joe said.  
  
"Joe, get up," Duncan said.  
  
"What? Am I being kidnapped again?" Joe asked.  
  
"This is no laughing matter, do you know what happened tonight?" Duncan asked.  
  
"You almost got your head ripped off, Mario got blown full of holes and some looloo wants to meet you in England before the next Sunday," Joe replied.  
  
"You followed us again?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yes, and quite frankly, I'm surprised, I've seen you take on some pretty strong Immortals but I've never seen anyone as powerful as Mario, you're lucky to be alive, he's already murdered 80 people in the last three years," Joe said.  
  
"82 in the last four years," Duncan corrected him.  
  
"You still think he killed that brat's parents?" Joe asked.  
  
"Damn straight I do, I know he did, now come on, get dressed, we have a plane to catch, the next flight heading to Englad leaves in an hour.  
  
"Duncan, how long does it take to get to the airport, get four tickets and make the next flight to England?" Joe asked.  
  
"Forty-nine minutes," Duncan replied.  
  
"You had this scheduled before you came in, didn't you?" Joe asked.  
  
Duncan headed into Amber's room and reached for the lights, but they were already on. He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her.  
  
"What is it?" she asked.  
  
"Why didn't you tell us about this?" Duncan asked, showing her the letter.  
  
"Now look," Amber said.  
  
Amber started to sit up in bed, but Joe sat at the foot of the bed, and on her knees so she couldn't get up.  
  
"You look Amber, your life is already in enough trouble, now you're being threatened again by someone we don't even know, why the hell didn't you say anything?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because I didn't think you'd find it serious," Amber said.  
  
"Didn't find it serious? Amber, we've almost lost our heads 3 times in the last 2 days, what does that tell you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It tells me your wasting time yelling at me when we've got a plane to catch, that's what it's telling me," Amber replied.  
  
Well, they were able to catch the plane, this time it was different, this time, there were 50 other people on the plane with them.  
  
"I dare say, I do hope that by the time we get to England, they're through serving dinner, I can't tell you how much I hate the fish and chips down there, the fish is so fresh it moves, and the fries are nothing but barely cooked dough," Amber said to Methos, sort of a joke between friends.  
  
Amber then turned to the other side, where Duncan seemed rather uptight.  
  
"Something wrong?" she asked.  
  
"Someone else is on board," Duncan said.  
  
"Who?" Amber asked.  
  
"I don't know, all I know is it's an Immortal," Duncan told her.  
  
"Maybe it's Methos," Amber thought.  
  
"No, it's someone else," Duncan replied.  
  
Just then, the pilot got on the speaker.  
  
"This is your pilot speaking, Captain Marrow, if you all lean over to the right window..."  
  
Everyone leaned over to the right windows to see what it was.  
  
"The plane will topple," he finished.  
  
Everyone got back in their seats and started panicking.  
  
"A little pilot humor," he said.  
  
"Yes, very little," Duncan mumbled.  
  
A few rows behind Duncan sat a person with short orange hair wearing large black sunglasses staring at him.  
  
By the time they arrived in England, it was going on 8:00 in the morning, when they got to the airport, they had another message awaiting them from their curtious stranger.  
  
"What's it say?" Joe asked.  
  
"Says, 'I've already reserved a temporary stay for you at 518 Southeast Runninburn Lane, I'm looking forward to seeing you once again on the 21st'," Duncan read.  
  
"Sounds simple enough to me," Amber said.  
  
"He sure is," Duncan added.  
  
They decided to check out the house, it turned out to be a 4 story Victorian house.  
  
"Your enemy sure knows how to treat his rivals before he chops their heads off," Duncan laughed.  
  
"I'm still anxious to see who this guy is," Amber replied.  
  
"How many enemies can you make in 16 years anyway?" Joe asked.  
  
"Well how do you define enemy?" Amber asked.  
  
"You know, someone you annoy the hell out of, someone you start a feud, a----a war next door," Joe described.  
  
"Oh.........57," Amber said.  
  
"57! Are you insane? That's a whole mob!" Joe exclaimed.  
  
"Don't worry, most of them are already dead," Amber explained.  
  
Everyone looked at her with suspicious eyes.  
  
"Ohhhhh....surely you don't think I killed them all. Four of them were already in their 80s, six of them had recently had dramatic fever, 13 of them were wanted dead, 12 of them were getting death row, and 17 of them all worked in a saw mill and got into a few accidents," Amber said.  
  
"That's 42 right there, and then there were those two that were Watchers," Duncan added.  
  
"You have a good memory for someone over 400," Amber said.  
  
"I say, this fellow must visit England a lot to be able to reserve an eccentric house like this, don't you agree Joe?" Methos asked.  
  
"I use a walker, I'm not blind, I can see where we are and it can stand a damn good dusting, either that or a bulldozer," Joe said.  
  
"Well, I'm going to unpack, some guy's gonna try and murder me, I wanna get my Cobray out and turn him into Swiss cheese," Amber replied.  
  
Amber went up to the second floor and picked out a room to move into.  
  
She took her coat out of her suitcase and went to hang it up, when she opened her closet, she found that several of Duncan's clothes were already in the closet, but on the opposite side. Amber got an idea, she went into her closet and felt along in the dark, until she found a doorknob, and she came out into what looked like Duncan's room.  
  
"You move in faster than me, guess that means you get kicked out less times," she said.  
  
"Well now I wouldn't say that," Duncan replied, "so how'd you find your room?"  
  
"Next to yours, apparently we're sharing a closet," Amber said, "have you seen any other part of the house yet?"  
  
"The kitchen..."  
  
"Full of cobwebs and mold?" Amber asked.  
  
"Very funny," Duncan said.  
  
"I guess this guy knows more about us than we thought," Amber said.  
  
"Apparently so, the icebox is already full, apparently he knew when to expect us," Duncan replied.  
  
"Apparently," Amber said.  
  
At that time, the phone rang, Duncan answered it, although he had a pretty good idea what to expect.  
  
"Hello," he said.  
  
"Nice to see you've arrived."  
  
"Yes, same here," Duncan said.  
  
"Did you receive the note?"   
  
"Yes I did, but tell me, why the unusually large gap in between dates?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Oh don't worry about it, just make yourselves at home, I'll see you on the 21st at 9:00 at the Larcenay Garage on Thunder Road, you better be there."  
  
"Oh I will, you don't need to worry about that," Duncan replied.  
  
"Wonderful, and bring Jenzon with you as well, cuz if not, I'll come looking for her."  
  
"Why?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Let's just say it's been a while since we last fought, and I would like to see how things have changed since our last battle."  
  
With that, they hung up, Amber spent most of the day going in and out of every room in the house, just to find out where everything was, and just to be annoying. The rest of the time, she was in her room polishing her automatic. Around 3:00, Duncan came in through the closet, Amber was sitting on her bed staring at a framed photo of her parents, shortly before they died.  
  
"You okay?" he asked.  
  
"I'm fine, I------what's that awful smell? What in the hell are you drinking?" Amber asked.  
  
"A bloody mary, the wine rack's a real Smorgasbord for alcohol," Duncan said.  
  
"I feel like throwing up," Amber said.  
  
"Oh, sorry," Duncan said.  
  
He threw the bloody mary out of the glass over his shoulder, he looked over at Amber, she had her hand over her face.  
  
"Amber, are you crying again?" he asked.  
  
Amber put her hand down and looked at him, tears running down her face.  
  
"Amber, what's the matter?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm not as afraid of dying as I am of dying alone, I've been on my own for four years now, when I met you, things became different, but I just know that soon you'll be on your way somewhere else, and if I live through this, I'll be on my own," Amber said.  
  
"Amber, listen to me, I promise that I'm not going to let anything happen to you, when I get through here, I'm taking you with me," Duncan told her.  
  
"Really?" Amber asked.  
  
"I don't know why," Duncan said, "but every time I start thinking about your past, what you've been through, and the two of us meeting, I get a strange sense of deja vu, as if I've known you before. And, I promise you, that I am not going to leave you here when I get done with Mario."  
  
As Duncan put his arms around her, Amber broke loose, ran into the bathroom and threw up again. Duncan ran in the bathroom after her to make sure she was okay.  
  
"Are you allright?" he asked.  
  
"I will be in a minute," Amber said.  
  
"How long as this been going on?" Duncan asked.  
  
"A few days, it started up right before I met you," Amber replied.  
  
"Look Amber, I don't want to worry you, but you'll have to be careful, I'm not sure we can get a doctor up here to see if you're allright." he told her.  
  
"I'm not worried, it's usually the worst when either I think about Mario or when I get upset," Amber said.  
  
"Well listen, try not to worry about Mario if you can help it, I'll take care of him," Duncan assured him.  
  
For a while, Amber looked at him as if she didn't know what to say, but she replied in a rather loud whisper, "thank you, Duncan MacLeod."  
  
Later that night, Duncan was going over some books when Joe came hobbling down the stairs on his cane.  
  
"What in the name of Mike Rozertzki are you doing up at this hour?" Joe asked.  
  
"Have you or haven't you been with me during every flight within the last week? I've been jet lagged so many times, my body's lost all sense of remembering when to be dead exhausted," Duncan said.  
  
"Have you been doing much thinking of this whole ordeal? Meeting an Immortal within five days who none of us know, and he's telling us what to do, where to meet him, why the whole thing is monstrous!" Joe said.  
  
"And you're just making me plain nauseous," Amber replied.  
  
Duncan and Joe turned around to find their persistant friend.  
  
"You're still up?" Duncan humorusly asked.  
  
"Is the kitchen open or do I have to wait until 5:00 A.M to get bread and water like everyone else in this joint?" Amber asked.  
  
Joe and Duncan followed her into the kitchen, to find that she had already taken out a tray of crackers, a can of sardines, a sliced ham, a bunch of bananas, a head of lettuce, and a gallon of tomato juice.  
  
"What are you doing?" Joe asked.  
  
"Didn't you hear me? I'm hungry, the last time I ate was on Thursday right before we left Rocco," Amber said.  
  
"Amber, Rocco is not a part of Russia," Duncan said.  
  
"What would you know? You were born in Scotland, traveled to Paris, England, Rome and everything in between, but since when were you in Russia enough to study it?" Amber asked.  
  
"This is ridiculous, I'm going to bed," Joe said.  
  
"If you can make it up the stairs that is," Amber replied.  
  
"Don't be a jackass, I can make it up the stairs any night in the week," Joe said, as he hobbled out of the kitchen.  
  
"He thinks, he doesn't know this, but shortly after our little discussion today, I decided to have some fun so I shortened the leg on his walker so it'll wobble," Amber said.  
  
"Hey I'm gonna whooooooaaaaaaa!"   
  
Joe could be heard falling down in the next room.  
  
"Joe!"  
  
"Ah, let him go, he'll be fine," Amber said, "personally Duncan, between you and me, I think your friend Dawson is just a real son of a bitch."  
  
"He can be trying, but he tries hard," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, and apparently he loves his work, because he is working my last nerve," Amber replied.  
  
"Are you allright? You're looking a bit pale," Duncan told her.  
  
"Going 3 days without eating will do that, you lose all the color, the green from lettuce, the pink from sardines, the yellow from corn, the red from the tomatoes, that, and you lose 10 pounds and you also lose your sense of humor," Amber said.  
  
"Well, you seem to have been able to keep it somehow," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, well, it's the only thing that keeps me going," Amber replied.  
  
The next day, Duncan was a bit hungover from last night (he'd helped himself to 6 bloody marys, 2 margeritas, 4 high and dry scotches, and 2 shots of vodka), when he heard some people screaming. Amber (in a towel) was chasing Joe down the stairs, yelling at him and scratching at him.  
  
"Hey, hey HEY! What's going on here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Your nasty old perverted friend walked in on me while I was trying to take a shower," Amber told him.  
  
"You take that back, I am not old!" Joe said.  
  
"I rest my case," Amber said, "what did you see?"  
  
"Well I didn't see much..."  
  
Amber started screaming at him again, clawing at his eyes and hitting him, Duncan had to pull her off of him.  
  
"He just said he didn't see much," Duncan turned around to Joe, "and which way did you mean that in?"  
  
"It doesn't matter, the point is he looked anyway," Amber said.  
  
"I'm an old man, what would I want with you?" Joe asked.  
  
"I was about to ask you the same thing," Amber replied.  
  
"Now you look here you little."  
  
The two went at it again, Duncan had to get in the middle of them (literally) like a referee to call it off.  
  
"DING DING DING! End of round 1, Joe, you go in the kitchen, Amber, you come with me," he said.  
  
Duncan took her upstairs into his room.  
  
"Allright, what's going on?" he asked.  
  
"All I know is I was trying to get a shower when your cucky old friend came in and pulled back the curtain. And the next thing I know, well... This is the next thing I know," Amber replied.  
  
"Allright that settles it, get dressed, I'm going to speak with Joe and see what he has to say," Duncan said.  
  
"And the next thing you know, she's chasing me down the stairs trying to claw my eyes out!" Joe exclaimed.  
  
"So you didn't know she was in there, Joe, didn't it seem strange that when you went into the bathroom, the shower was already on?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Not to me, and not in this house, you know that book I've been reading at night, The Afterhouse?" Joe asked.  
  
"So?" Duncan returned.  
  
"So, every time I'm about to finish one chapter, someone turns out the lights," Joe said.  
  
"Are you serious?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Positive, and that ain't all, when I go to get a shower, I turn on the hot water and I get cold, I turn on the cold, and I get hot!" Joe exclaimed.  
  
"Then take a cold shower," Duncan laughed.  
  
"That's not the point Mac, this house is screwed," Joe said.  
  
Just then, they heard Amber scream from the next floor up, they took off running to see what it was, they found her in the den.  
  
"What's going on in here?" Duncan asked.  
  
Amber pointed to the other doorway, Methos was spread out on the floor unconscious, Duncan ran over to him and picked him up to check for a pulse. However, when he couldn't feel a pulse, he checked for a heartbeat.  
  
"I say old chap, getting a bit too friendly there, aren't you?" Methos asked.  
  
"What happened to you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I can't quite say I know, the last thing I remember was coming down the stairs and I tripped, I have no recollection after that," Methos replied.  
  
Duncan turned around to have Amber get something, but she was already gone. She was doing a little investigating to this mishap, she was checking out the stairwell Methos came down. It seemed rather normal, a few stairs were a bit wobbly, but nothing that would cause him to fall, and there was nothing in the room above either. She couldn't figure it out, she headed back down to the den, and slammed the door, a bowling ball rolled out from behind the door. Amber picked it up, it had several dents in it, she figured it must've been what tripped him up, but where did it come from?  
  
On the 20th, Amber was in the kitchen making a real buffet worth of food, when Duncan came in with an old records book.  
  
"I've been going over this several times but it doesn't make any sense," Duncan said.  
  
"What?" Amber asked.  
  
"Your parents were killed in Philidelphia, the paper said they were to be buried in Philidelphia, but I came across a book that keeps all the records of a cemetery a few miles from here, and it has their names in it," Duncan said.  
  
"That's right," Amber replied, "at the time, there was a grave robber scare, so they decided to bury them where they were born. Right here in England, well...not exactly RIGHT here. I do have a question though."  
  
"What's that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Why the hell has Jessica Fletcher possessed my friend a highlander?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan laughed it off, it was then that he realized what a Smorgasbord she had put up.  
  
"Don't tell me you plan on eating that," he said.  
  
"What choice do I have? I haven't been able to eat anything in 3 days," Amber said.  
  
"What? That's impossible," Duncan told her, "everytime I pass by here, you're making a sandwich this thicik."  
  
Duncan held his hands apart by about 6 inches.  
  
"That's right," Amber said, "and every time I plan to eat a sandwich this big, there's always a knock at the door, or the phone rings, or something, and when I come back, it's gone. Joe says there's a ghost around here somewhere, turning off the lights, slamming the doors, messing with the hot water, stealing all sorts of little things, food, books, a piece of clothing."  
  
"It sounds to me more like a petty thief instead of a ghost, Amber, the next time there's someone at the door, I'll answer it," Duncan said.  
  
They heard the bell to the backdoor.  
  
"Battle stations," Amber sarcastically said.  
  
Duncan answered it, another letter from the mysterious Immortal.  
  
Amber turned around in her chair to find her sandwich gone.  
  
"Duncan, you remember that great big sandwich I made?" she asked.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Then maybe you can tell me where it went," Amber said.  
  
"It's gone again? Say, what do you put in those things?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It's always different, peanutbutter and pickles, grilled cheese and tuna, today it was ham and potato chips," Amber said.  
  
Duncan had to think for a minute, this sounded somewhat familiar.  
  
"Peanutbutter and pickles, ham and potato chips, there's only one other person I know who eats like that," he mumbled to himself.  
  
Of course, he didn't dare tell Amber.  
  
"What's the letter say?" Amber asked.  
  
"It says, 'The deadline is tomorrow night, don't be late, 9:00 at the Larcenay Garage at 1718 West Thunder Road', well, apparently he's got it remembered," Duncan said.  
  
"Call me crazy, but I'm almost looking forward to seeing him, it would be nice to have a face to match all these threats," Amber replied.  
  
"I'm beginning to wonder who he is too, he knows me, do I know him? He knows when we arrived, where has he been the last few days? We know he's an Immortal, but good or evil?" Duncan pondered.  
  
"Why the hell are you talking like Ernie Lezorro?" Amber asked.  
  
"I'm just trying to think, when a guy threatens your life then has you wait a week to meet him, there's something up," Duncan said.  
  
Duncan tried to avoid it but for some reason he couldn't help but stare at Amber.  
  
"What? Am I hemmoraging?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan laughed as he tried taking his eyes off her.  
  
"No, it's just that, you remind me of someone I knew a long time ago," Duncan said.  
  
"Why's that?" Amber asked.  
  
"She was very beautiful," Duncan replied.  
  
"Hey Duncan, I don't know who you think you're messing with, but flattery will get you nowhere, do it one more time I'll break your arm," Amber told him.  
  
"I can live with that," he said.  
  
"And if you do it again after that, I'll twist your nose into a propeller," she added.  
  
"I can live with that."  
  
"And if you do it again after that, I'm gonna marry you," she added.  
  
"Okay, no more flattery," Duncan laughed.  
  
The next night, they headed to the Larcenay Garage, they found it empty.  
  
"Looks like he's the one that'll be late," Duncan said.  
  
Just then, something came over Duncan, the other Immortal was in the garage as well.  
  
"That's what you think."  
  
"Allright, we've had enough of this, who are you?" Duncan asked.  
  
The figure jumped down from the skylight, Amber screamed and jumped over Duncan's head and into a corner.  
  
"Amber, what's the matter with you? Do you know who that is?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, Richie Ryan," Amber replied.  
  
"That's right, he's the link to the next generation of Immortals," Duncan told her.  
  
"Yeah, the missing link," she responded.  
  
"Now you see here you..."  
  
As Richie closed in, Amber punched him in the jaw and ran out the window, Methos followed her.  
  
"So you're the one that arranged all this?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I didn't arrange to get busted in the mouth by brass knuckles if that's what you mean," Richie said.  
  
"Why didn't you say anything in the first place?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because I didn't think that you and her were together at first, I was hoping I could meet you alone, but I couldn't. So I arranged for all of you to come," Richie answered.  
  
"Well what's the big idea anyway? Why did you have us come here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because we all have the same problem, Mario Venvetta is out for the kill, unfortunately, its on all of us," Richie said.  
  
"You mean to tell me---------wait a minute, why did Amber run out of here like that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"You could say that we had a rocky meeting ourselves a few years back," Richie replied.  
  
"Come on you," Duncan said, grabbing Richie by his jacket.  
  
Duncan threw open the front door and turned on the lights, he and Richie stepped in.  
  
"Doesn't seem quite as good a condition it was when I had it reserved," Richie said.  
  
"Well, don't think we're not grateful for all the trouble, but why did you want us to meet in England?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I figured it would be better if we did, besides, Mario's got the bull by the horns he's planning everything for our demise here. I figured it would be best if when he came after us, we were ready for him," Richie explained.  
  
"We haven't seen any sight of him since you pumped him full of lead," Duncan told him.  
  
They heard something coming from another room a ways down the hall, up through one doorway came Methos and Amber. When Amber saw Richie, she screamed and ran into the kitchen, Duncan went after her, Richie stayed to speak with Methos.  
  
"So Methos, exactly how have things been going lately?" Richie asked.  
  
"Oh, they've been going fair, although I must say, it was a rather strange experience chasing Amber earlier. I found her at the top floor of a building and she jumped out the window, so, I went out after her, rather strange for a 10 story fall," Methos said.  
  
"Why's that?" Richie asked.  
  
"The building only had 9 stories," Methos said.  
  
"Amber, what're you doing?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm running for my life, Ryan's a monster, he tried to kill me," Amber said.  
  
"Are you serious?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Duncan, do I look like this is some kind of joke? Am I laughing? Or else am I heading for the nearest open window?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan grabbed her, picked her up and shook her.  
  
"Amber, what is going on here? How did you come to meet Richie in the first place?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It's a long story, in short, we met in New Jersey about 6 years ago, I remember, I was being chased by a real bitch of an officer when I ran into him. At the time I was so short I ran through his legs, he grabbed the officer by the throat, choked him for about 2 seconds, then threw him into the driver's seat of the police car," Amber said.  
  
"And?"   
  
"And, in order to get the roof down on one of those cars, you have to open it like a tin of sardines," Amber said.  
  
"Oh, so then what happened?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, we got acquainted but, we didn't go too long without starting a feud, I remember, we were hiding out in some joint near the docks, we started calling each other names, and then..."  
  
"Then what?"  
  
"Then I bit him, he had to get 14 tetanus shots," Amber said.  
  
"Then what?"  
  
"Then he disappeared one day, I always wondered if he really had it in for me," she said, "which brings me to my next question, where're we gonna put him for the night?"  
  
"You want me to stay here? That's ridiculous," Richie said.  
  
"Maybe to you," Duncan told him.  
  
"Mac, this is just a joke of yours, right?" Richie asked.  
  
"No, it's no joke, and it's not my idea either, Amber thought it up," Duncan said.  
  
"You?" Richie asked.  
  
"That's right, Ryan, and if you refuse, I'll crack your teeth," Amber replied.  
  
"You already did that at the garage," he told her.  
  
Richie took his bag and his gun and headed up to the third floor.  
  
"Well, I'll see you in the morning, I'll be busy tonight," Amber said.  
  
"Amber, surely you're not going to keep Richie up are you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Don't be dumb, I'm going to raid the icebox, your friend Ryan's been stealing my lunch for the last three days," Amber replied.  
  
(End of chapter 5, 6 will be up soon.) 


	6. Breakin In

Breaking In  
  
Chapter 6 of Going My Way  
  
A storm had come up out of nowhere, Amber was in the kitchen fixing a 3 course meal, she turned on the faucet for a drink, but nothing came out. She somehow got her head under the faucet in the sink to see if it was plugged up.  
  
"What're you doing?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Dying of thirst, the faucet's broken," she said.  
  
Amber picked up a metal bucket and headed for the backdoor.  
  
"Excuse me," Duncan said.  
  
"Why? The alcohol doesn't smell that bad on you," Amber said.  
  
"Where do you think you're going?" Duncan asked.  
  
"There's an old water pump in the back, I'm going to see if it has any water in it," she said.  
  
"Amber it's raining!" Duncan told her.  
  
"That's okay, I have an umbrella," Amber said.  
  
"Amber!" he sighed, "Why don't you just get the water from the rain?"  
  
"Because then I have to boil it, I could die of dehydration before then," she said.  
  
"That does it, give me that bucket, I'll get the water!" Duncan exclaimed.  
  
"Boy, you're stubborn, when you were little, I'll bet your whooped your father," Amber said.  
  
Duncan was ready to yell at her, but he didn't, she didn't know, there was no way she could've known, he went around to the pump and started pumping, but no water came out. He tried again, harder and faster, nothing. He picked up the bucket and turned around, and the water came spewing out, he put the bucket under the spout and tried again, nothing. Fed up with it, he kicked it, it hurt, but it got the water to come out.   
  
"Here's the water," he said.  
  
"Thanks, I-----what happened to you?" Amber laughed.  
  
"I got into a fight with the pump and it spit in my eye, that's what," Duncan said.  
  
"You don't seem too steamed," she said.  
  
"It's only water, it'll dry out, although I might have to hang myself on a line," Duncan said.  
  
"When I get through eating, I'm going to bed, I'm exhausted, I've been so worried this past week, and for what? Some punk kid I gave rabies to six years ago," Amber replied.  
  
"You don't sound too worried now," Duncan said.  
  
"I'm not at the moment," she said.  
  
"Something wrong?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, I'm just tired," Amber replied.  
  
"I can see that, come on," Duncan said.  
  
"No, I don't want to go anywhere, I feel awful," she said.  
  
"What do you mean?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I mean, everything looks strange, so is everything I hear," she said.  
  
"Amber, how long have you been up?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I don't know, what day is this?" she asked.  
  
"That does it, you're going to bed," Duncan said.  
  
He picked her up and carried her into her bedroom and put her down on the bed, when he left, Amber got up out of bed and made sure the hallway was clear, she had an idea for tonight.  
  
Up a floor, Richie was trying to sleep, although the storm had its really noisy moments, then, something really got on his nerve, a drippy faucet somewhere on the floor. He tried stuffing a pillow over his head but he kept hearing that irritating drip, so he went into the bathroom, and 2 minutes later, he went back to bed. Turned out he'd twisted the faucet into a butterfly knot. With that, he decided to go back to sleep, so, he turned off the light, only to hear something new this time, a strange sound, he wasn't quite sure what it was. He turned on the light and looked up, a book handing half way off its shelf had its pages blowing in the wind. Richie threw the book out the window and then closed the window, and went back to bed.   
  
Then he heard what sounded like someone throwing open and slamming down a window, he went out into the hall to see Methos and Amber messing with one around the corner.  
  
"Methos, what in the blue blazes are you doing?" he asked.  
  
"We're having an argument about the window, I said to open it and get some air," Amber said.  
  
"And I told her if you open that window, you'll have to be a blue fish to breathe through that," Methos explained.  
  
"So, we've been having a little disagreement," Amber replied.  
  
"Yes, she's been opening, and I've been closing it," Methos said.  
  
"Closing it? What with? A sledgehammer?" Richie asked.  
  
The three of them started yelling at each other, and Amber decided to end it, she opened up the window again, and let it rain on Richie and Methos.  
  
"HEY!" they yelled.  
  
"Well at least now you've shut up," she said.  
  
"Methos, Richie, what's going on up here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Amber looked twice at Duncan, he came running up in a strange robe.  
  
"That your choice of wardrobe for the evening?" she laughed.  
  
"Mac, I'm trying to get some sleep, but every time someone starts up with something, and I've had it up to here," Richie said.  
  
"Allright, allright, calm down, no reason to blow your lid, who started this?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Amber," Richie said.  
  
"That's impossible, she's in bed, I locked her in her room for the night," Duncan said.  
  
"Well then she must be one hell of a lock picker, she was just here," Richie said, "where's Joe? How come he hasn't heard anything?"  
  
"Oh Joe's been taking pills at night, he's sleeping like a baby," Duncan explained.  
  
Well, they were getting nowhere in their conversation, so they went their own ways for the night, Richie went back into his room, he turned off the light and went to bed. Amber came in through the closet, she got up to Richie's bed, pulled his arm up, and yanked it like a slot machine, and ran. Richie heard something and got up, and spit out twenty-five dollars in quarters, he went out in the hall to see if he could find Amber, while he was doing that. She was in his room checking out the floorboards, some of them were really noisy.  
  
"Sounds like they forgot to oil the mice," she said.  
  
Richie was down to the kitchen and he couldn't find Amber, someone threw the lights from behind and he turned around only to find Duncan.  
  
"What are you still doing up?" he asked.  
  
"I came down to get a drink, the sink's busted upstairs," Richie said.  
  
"That one's broken, over here," Duncan said.  
  
Richie filled his glass in the bucket and sighed, "if there's one thing I've come to know from meeting Amber Jenzon, its on the first night you're with her, don't expect to get any rest."  
  
"Sounds a lot like what you've been doing the last few days," Duncan laughed.  
  
"Well, I've met a few people and they said the best way to welcome someone around here is to get on their last nerve," Richie said.  
  
"And so far it's been working," Duncan replied.  
  
"So what do you think of her?" Richie asked.  
  
"Huh?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Oh come on, I know surely by now you have to have something of an opinion about her, everybody does," Richie said.  
  
"Well, she's difficult to stay in synche with, but she means well," Duncan replied.  
  
"Yeah I'll bet, I've heard about the hard time she's been giving you," Richie said.  
  
"And?" Duncan asked.  
  
"And most people I've asked have known her long enough to slap her across the face," Richie responded, "I hope this time I'll be able to get some sleep, it's just like when we first met, you can't get any rest around her."  
  
Richie went upstairs as Duncan stayed in the kitchen.  
  
"I know," he sighed.  
  
Richie went into his room and locked the door, and jumped into bed, but it wasn't long until he heard something, it sounded like someone beating a drum along the hallway, he unlocked his door and went out in the hall and saw nothing. He went back into his room, slammed the door and jumped into bed, not too long after that, he heard a gun shot and was covered in water.  
  
"Red leader, red leader, I'm going down, Red leader, I'm drowning, I'm drowning, I'm glug-glug-glug-glug."  
  
Richie turned on his light and found that his bed was a waterbed, and he accidentally pulled the trigger on his .22 long rifle in his sleep, and shot it.  
  
"Well, that takes care of my plan to get a shower in the morning," he said.  
  
In his room, Duncan was going through some more records and newspapers, there was something about the death of Amber's parents that didn't quite seem to tie in with everything. One book came open and several pictures fell out of it, he picked up one in particular with Amber and her parents, taken around the time Amber was probably 10 years old. Something in the picture caught his eye, he placed his glass over one part of it and saw a familiar face, Richie!  
  
The clock on the wall above went off, 1:00, Duncan decided he'd get back to work on it in the morning. By 1:27, he fell into some strange dream.  
  
Duncan ran up the stairs following Jamie, the woman he fell head over heels for downstairs at the club, she led him into her room and locked the door.  
  
"This is so exciting," she said.  
  
"Maybe to you, but not to me, I'm not a very exciting person, come on, let me out, I don't even excite myself, I'm very boring, the first thing I do after I wake up is fall back asleep," Duncan pleaded.  
  
Jamie pushed him down on the bed and started kissing him, but he pushed her off.  
  
"Something's wrong here, something's not functioning properly," Duncan said.  
  
"I have something to take care of that, don't you worry," Jamie told him.  
  
Jamie slipped into the next room, Duncan got up and heard something, he saw a spy hole in the wall so he looked through it. A much younger Amber was being chased by what looked like a recently scarred Mario, he grabbed her and threw her down on the floor. Duncan slipped out the front door and into the next room and grabbed Mario by the throat and threw him against the wall. He then grabbed Amber and jumped out the window and down the fire escape, maintaining a tight hold on her.  
  
The next morning, Richie was down in the kitchen pouring a wine cooler when Amber came down the stairs.  
  
"Pour that out," she said.  
  
"What?" Richie asked.  
  
Amber grabbed the glass and poured the contents down the drain.  
  
"What gives?" Richie asked.  
  
"I need to talk to you and I need to talk to you sober," she said.  
  
"What's up?" Richie asked.  
  
"Last night at around 3 o clock, I looked out my bedroom window and do you know what I saw?" Amber asked.  
  
"Amber, I'm sure your parents told you about this before, when a thunderstorm starts up, electricity..."  
  
"No, no, no, not that, this is serious, last night, I thought I heard something and I looked out the window and I saw Duncan gliding around the yard in his sleep," Amber said.  
  
"Are you serious?"   
  
"Dead serious, more so than you think, Duncan was carrying a butcher knife in his hand, like the one Michael Myers swiped off the cutting board in Halloween 2, you were in this house before us, is there a knife like that around?" Amber asked.  
  
"Several, but they're all locked up, and------one of them's missing," Richie realized.  
  
"Oh God," Amber said.  
  
"Something wrong?" Duncan entered the kitchen.  
  
Amber screamed and jumped over Richie.  
  
"Is something the matter?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, nothing's the matter, actually there is," Amber said, "it's him, he tried to strangle me."  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What? That'd ridiculous, I did not," Richie said.  
  
"Don't believe him, he's a liar!" Amber said.  
  
After Duncan left, Richie grabbed her by the shirt.  
  
"What're you doing?" he asked.  
  
"If Duncan knew what we were really talking about, he might try and-------well never mind, you already look like the walking dead," Amber said.  
  
That night, Duncan slowly crept out of his room and down the stairs, Amber and Richie were just coming out of their rooms as that time and went down after him. Richie grabbed him by the shoulders, Amber slipped in next to his left rib, and they took him back upstairs, Duncan was mumbling something in his sleep.  
  
"What's he saying?" Richie asked.  
  
"You've known him longer than me, you tell me," Amber replied.  
  
They put him back in his room and locked him in, so they'd know if he broke out again, but this time he stayed put. The next day, Richie and Amber were arguing over last night when Duncan came into the kitchen.  
  
"What's going on?" he asked.  
  
However, neither one was willing to speak.  
  
"I get it, so that's how it's gonna be, Amber, go up to my room and wait for me, I'll be up in a minute," Duncan told her.  
  
"But Duncan," Amber said.  
  
"I said go," Duncan told her.  
  
"What's going on Mac?" Richie asked.  
  
"Richie, has something been going on the last couple nights?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Matter of fact there is, the last couple nights, Amber says she's been watching you sleepwalk around the property carrying a butcher knife, last night we found you heading down the stairs, so we put you back in your room and locked you in," Richie explained.  
  
"Thank God, for a minute there I thought I was drunk, but seriously, the last few nights, I've been having these strange dreams, they seem beyond explanation, it's not quite something I can describe," Duncan said.  
  
"Ask me, Amber's becoming a real pain in the neck," Richie said.  
  
"From what she's been telling me, it's the other way around," Duncan said.  
  
"That doesn't surprise me," Richie replied, "she's always been a real brat."  
  
"Well apparently you haven't been hearing her, she's not too comfortable talking about you Richie, everytime she starts talking about you two in New Jersey, she gets uneasy," Duncan said.  
  
"Really?" Richie asked, not believing it.  
  
"Yes, last night she was telling me about the time that you two went at each other's throats, the only other time I'd seen her like that was when she started talking about Mario, where'd this feud with you two start?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Can't really say it started anywhere, we just always seemed to go at each other for no particular reason," Richie replied.  
  
Duncan went into his room and found Amber sitting on the bed.  
  
"You allright?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah, a little tired though, I was up most of the last night making sure you didn't stumbling into a ditch out there, and the night before that, I spent keeping Richie up," Amer replied.  
  
"So he told me, Amber, is something wrong?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Not really, I'm just tired, I have been for a while now," Amber said.  
  
"I don't mean like that, Amber, I know that there's still some hot blood between you and Richie, and I know that he's come to resemble Mario a lot, but you have to understand, he's my friend," Duncan said.  
  
"He was your student, and no offense, but there's just something about the two of us that we can't get along with each other," Amber replied.  
  
That night a heavy wind blew up, glass could be heard shattered from two different parts of the house, Duncan came storming out of his room and Amber hers, they met in the center of the hallway.  
  
"Bah! That wind just blew my window into a million pieces, now it's as cold as the Artic in there," Duncan exclaimed.  
  
"Yeah, mine did the same, it's this crazy wind, it attacks from the south and north, but leaves the east and west alone," Amber replied.  
  
Well, rather than babble their heads off all night, they decided to move into a different room until the windows could be repaired, unfortunately, they got stuck with the same room.  
  
"Well, it's better than nothing, at least I don't have to sleep with that punk, Ryan," Amber said.  
  
"And at least I don't have to share a room with Joe Dawson, that's terrible, he snores like a vacuum cleaner, you have to turn him on his side so he won't inhale the curtains," Duncan added.  
  
"Maybe he did, and that's what took our windows," Amber thought.  
  
Amber jumped on Duncan's bed and jumped up into hers.  
  
"A fine thing, why do we have to sleep in bunkbeds anyway?" Duncan askd.  
  
"This is the way we do it in the states where I come from, you ever been there?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan didn't feel like going into long stories tonight so...  
  
"A few times, can't really say I found it too good a place to stay," Duncan laughed.  
  
"Anyway, we always did it like this due to a great scare a few years back. Happened to a nice family called the Rejeunnas, remember the raid? They didn't, they lived in a nice 2-story home in the middle of Detroit, always felt safe in their home. One Saturday night while they were asleep, 2 marine soldiers broke in through the attic, robbed them blind, murdered them in their sleep and made off with everything. The police raided all of Detroit for week,s until they finally found them. Since then, everyone I know's been having their friends sleep all at different floors incase someone hears something. So, if I hear something coming from upstairs, I'll tell you," Amber explained.  
  
"And suppose you don't hear anything?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Then I'll go back to sleep," Amber said.  
  
That wasn't the answer Duncan was looking for, apparently he didn't ask the question right, but he didn't want to argue tonight, he was too tired. A short time later, he heard something, so he got up and heard someone jump under the bed.  
  
"Amber, what's going on?" he asked.  
  
"I wanted to ask you something but you were already asleep," she replied.  
  
"Well what is it?" he asked.  
  
"I was wondering, when and if Mario catches us, is he going to behead both of us?" Amber asked.  
  
"That's hard to say, me of course, but you, I'm not sure, if what you say is true and you're not an Immortal and he knows it, he could just try a simpler death for you. Although what, I'm not sure, throw you out a window, drop you from the top floor of a building, probably toss you into the river and drown," Duncan said.  
  
"That's impossible," Amber replied.  
  
"Why's that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because I can swim," Amber said.  
  
"Oh really?" Duncan asked.  
  
"That's right, although I'm not too sure I can prove it, you know a place around here where I can show you tomorrow?" she asked.  
  
And they jumped in, Amber swam down close to the bottom and across a few feet, but then she had to pop up again for some air.  
  
"I have to admit, you're a lot better than I thought you were," Duncan said.  
  
"Considering what you thought, that's not a lot of help," Amber replied.  
  
They both dove under again, however, Duncan became lightheaded and had to return to the surface, Richie was watching from the grounds.  
  
"Well, you always come down here at 6 in the morning for an ice cold swim with a lady?" Richie asked.  
  
"Come on Richie, I'm only trying to be friendly," he said.  
  
"You get any friendlier you'll be scratching up her insides, ay MacLeod?" Richie scoffed.  
  
"Oh come on, even I have more respect for her than that, besides, she just wanted to prove something and she did," Duncan said.  
  
Down below, Amber was swimming lower and closer to the bottom of the river when she saw something. There was a disturbance in the patterns of the water, Duncan dove down to see what happened to Amber, he pulled her up to the surface and laid her on the ground.  
  
"What's going on?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't know, she's not breathing!" Duncan exclaimed.  
  
Duncan checked the back of her throat and used CPR, but it wasn't working, an idea sparked in Richie's mind.  
  
"If it's not working, the water's in her lungs, you'll have to try Hemlich," he said.  
  
Richie turned Amber's face to one side and tried the combustions on her stomach until the water stopped flowing. Then Duncan tried CPR again, after the 3rd combustion, Amber started choking and coughing out small amounts of more water.  
  
"And you didn't see anyone down there?" Duncan asked Amber, as they headed back to the house.  
  
"I'm telling you, I never saw anyone at any time, all I know is I'm starting to feel a little lightheaded, so I get ready to come up, but something drags me down even further," Amber told him.  
  
"You think it was Mario?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't have any idea who it could've been," Amber replied.  
  
Amber ran upstairs with Richie following close behind, Duncan went into the den where Joe and Methos were having a discussion.  
  
"Why did I ever become partners with you?" Joe asked.  
  
"Probably because you can't run fast enough to get James Bond," Methos replied.  
  
"You wanna take this outside?"  
  
Joe started hopping on one leg, swinging both fists, but it stopped when they noticed Duncan.  
  
"What's going on?" Joe asked.  
  
"I honestly wish I knew, Amber and I went out for a swim at the river, and she almost wound up drowning!" Duncan replied.  
  
"Is she okay?" Methos asked.  
  
"She's fine, we got her out in time, but she went into minor shock on the way back here," Duncan explained.  
  
"Well what in the hell were you doing swimming at 6 in the morning? Not even the stingrays are up at this hour!" Joe said.  
  
"Why are you up?!" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because HE wouldn't shut up," Joe said.  
  
"All I did was drop something," Methos said.  
  
"Yeah, something, the entire top shelf in that damn storage room. He brought down everything, a bowling ball, a tool chest, kerosene lamps, I think even a dynamite plunger," Joe complained.  
  
Duncan went up to the second floor to see Amber, she came out with a towel over her left shoulder.  
  
"Hey Duncan, can you tell me what you think of this?" she asked.  
  
She took off the towel and revealed a few scrapes on her arm, well, Duncan couldn't find the right words to ask her how they got there, they weren't there when he pulled her out of the river.  
  
"My guess is they were there when I came to, but it took time for the blood to rise to the surface, but you would've thought they would've hurt before now," Amber added.  
  
"Well do they?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Like a rusted scapel," she asnwered.  
  
"Come on, we'll have Methos take a look at it," Duncan said.  
  
"He's a doctor?" Amber asked.  
  
"Doctor, lawyer, alliance, nemisis, Indian chef, dictator, lock expert, you name it, he's got the paperwork for it," Duncan laughed.  
  
"You think you can stay off that shoulder for the next few nights?" Methos asked.  
  
"No problem, after today I don't think I'll be getting any sleep," Amber replied.  
  
"How come?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm going to have to keep an eye on you, the last guy I knew who walked in his sleep went out once during a rainstorm that turned into a mudslide, he slipped down the hill, into a ditch and got flooded. And the weathermen predict strong storms for the next few nights," Amber told him.  
  
Later that afternoon, Amber went into Richie's bedroom, it looked like he was back in bed.  
  
"Hey Ryan, get up!" Amber slapped the middle of the lump and hurt her hand.   
  
She opened the drapes, letting the sun come in, but the lump still didn't move, she picked up the sheet and pulled out something.  
  
"What's this? Richie's gun? Oh boy, just wait till he finds this missing," she laughed, "I'm going to have a ball with him."  
  
"Joe, is Amber in here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Nope, I can happily say she isn't," Joe smiled.  
  
"You seem in a rather good mood," Duncan noticed.  
  
"Why shouldn't I be? I've managed to get through the first half of the day without getting knocked upside of my head," Joe said.  
  
"Joe, what're you doing?" Duncan asked, noticing an awful aroma.  
  
"Deep frying my night clothes," he said.  
  
"Why?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because that little monster Amber put starch and I think poison oak in them," Joe said.  
  
"Corn starch and poison oak? That's a rather strange combination, don't you think?"   
  
"All I know is, I pick them up, they're as stiff as an ironing board and my palms break out in a rash," Joe said.  
  
"Oh boy, it's a wonder we've made it so far without killing each other," Duncan said.  
  
"It's called breaking in."  
  
"What?"   
  
"It's called breaking in, the last few days we've been trying to break this house in, which also means trying to adapt to living with one another, some more pleasurable than others," Methos said, hinting Joe.  
  
"Hey!"   
  
"Well I haven't seen Amber for a few hours now, and quite frankly, I'm getting worried," Duncan sighed.  
  
"You might want to try the third floor, I've seen a bit of her up there lately," Methos suggested.  
  
Duncan went up to the third floor and looked around, nothing, down the hall, he saw a giant set of drapes moving, he walked down there and got snagged around the corner and into the next room by Amber.  
  
"What's going on?" he asked.  
  
"I've got trouble, when Ryan finds out, he'll have my neck, look!"  
  
Amber took out Richie's gun, busted into two pieces.  
  
"What happened?" Duncan laughed.  
  
"I was practicing 1-2ing Richie and I accidentally 1-2ed his .22," Amber replied.  
  
"Oh boy, don't worry, I'll come up with something," Duncan told her.  
  
"You think you can come up with something?" Amber asked.  
  
"Don't worry, I'll tell him," Duncan said.  
  
"Tell me what?"  
  
"Well, you should be more careful where you leave things lying around, I was on the floor, trying to find a magazine, and your long rifle fell off the edge and hit me on the head," Duncan said.  
  
"Man, are you okay?" Richie asked.  
  
"Oh yeah, I'm fine, but your rifle isn't," Duncan explained.  
  
"Well, there's an armory store over on Doctrine Boulevard, I'll go there tomorrow and get it replaced."  
  
As Richie left the room, Duncan grabbed Amber by her collar.  
  
"How did you bust that thing into two?" he asked.  
  
"Have you ever wanted to snap someone in half like a pretzel?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Then there's your answer," she mumbled, "come on."  
  
"Where we going?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Are you kidding? I don't care but I don't wanna be in Ryan's room when he gets back, who knows what he has crawling around in here!" Amber replied.  
  
(End of chapter 6, hopefully 7 will be up soon.) 


	7. Under the Influence

Under the Influence  
  
Chapter 7 of Going My Way, hope you enjoy...  
  
"Joe what're you doing?"  
  
"Hacking up my pajamas with a good ol' razor blade."  
  
"Joe, I might be from the 1500s, but I'm pretty modern, why don't we just call a priest and exorcise them?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Very funny, you never know, that kid could've placed a curse on me or something," Joe told him.  
  
"Joe, if this is about last week when she shortened your walker, I don't think..."  
  
"It's not about that, I don't really care if she has no respect for her elders, and I don't really mind the fact she doesn't know I don't have my legs, the thing that bothers me, is the fact that she's nice to you and Methos, but not to me," Joe said, "she calls me names, she chases me down the stairs, tries to claw my eyes out, now she's put a hoodoo on my pajamas," Joe sighed.  
  
"Well, if it helps any, she doesn't have too much a liking for Richie either," Duncan said.  
  
"I just don't get it, what's her problem?" Joe asked.  
  
"Joe, you have to remember, she killed 2 Watchers, she told me it was either she did them in or they'd kill her. She still has her suspicions about Watchers, and she told me, that whenever she's around someone she doesn't trust, she makes them feel as irritable as possible," Duncan explained.  
  
"What about Methos? He's a Watcher, why doesn't she attack him?" Joe asked.  
  
"Because, Methos is his person as an Immortal, Adam Pierson is the him of a Watcher, she hasn't seen Adam yet, and when she does, I wouldn't be surprised if she carried him up to the roof during a snowstorm in his underwear," Duncan said.  
  
"Now why would she be in his underwear?" Joe asked.  
  
"Very funny..."  
  
Duncan walked into Joe's room to find Amber emptying his wastebasket, all over his floor.  
  
"Amber, do you mind if I have a word with you?" he asked.  
  
"You may have several, but first I have a question, why does Joe have to use a walker at times? Did he get kicked by someone in combat boots, or is he recovering from a break, or is he just settling into old age?" Amber asked.  
  
"Amber, Joe can't break his legs, he doesn't have them," Duncan explained.  
  
"What? What're you talking about?" Amber asked.  
  
"He went to Vietnam a couple decades ago, got into a horrible accident."  
  
"Well, that would explain it," Amber said.  
  
"Explain what?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Why you seemed so worried that night when I shortened his walker and he fell down the stairs," Amber said.  
  
"She said what?" Joe asked.  
  
"You heard me," Duncan said as he took a wrench to the kitchen sink, "she said she's sorry."  
  
"Then why doesn't she come in here and say that?"   
  
"Come on, she's 16 years old and very stubborn, she's just now apologizing for screaming at me when we met in Russia," Duncan said.  
  
"Oh boy, thank goodness Richie got past that age, otherwise I'd probably be buried by now," Joe said.  
  
"No such luck, I'd come in at midnight and dig you out myself," Duncan told him, "there, now maybe that sink will work."  
  
Joe turned the faucet and Duncan stood up, the sink spewed water everywhere, drenching the two of them.  
  
"Hey Duncan, I'm------you two go swimming without telling me?" Amber asked.  
  
"Mac," Joe said, "remember a few years ago when you tried fixing that beer tap?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"And didn't you tighten it a bit too much?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"And in this case, you loosened the pipes too much?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Then go back halfway and see what happens!" Joe said.  
  
As Joe walked out of the kitchen, Amber got over to the sink.  
  
"I'll-----I'll take it you're not the best repairman around," she said.  
  
"That's putting it likely, but I try, and sometimes I'm not half bad at it," Duncan told her.  
  
"Well, if I were you, I wouldn't boast about it," Amber replied.  
  
That night, Amber was frantically polishing her gun when Duncan came in.  
  
"Amber, if you don't watch it, you'll rub a hole in that thing," he said.  
  
"I can't help it, all of a sudden, I'm just so nervous, real anxious, like I'm waiting for something to happen, and I don't even know it," Amber sighed.  
  
"Amber, I'm going to ask you a few questions and..."  
  
"I'm 5'4, 130 pounds, blood type A positive, my roots match my sideburns, I'm a good dancer and a real handful to be around," she said.  
  
"No," Duncan laughed, "I knew that, I'm going to ask you a few questions about what you said last week."  
  
"What about?" Amber asked.  
  
"Well..."  
  
"Hold it, is this going to involve a physical or a thorough search?" Amber asked.  
  
"No," Duncan said.  
  
"Then it's allright with me, what is it?" she asked.  
  
"Do you remember when you said that you killed 2 Watchers, and shortly after that, someone announced you became Immortal?"  
  
"Yeah, so?"  
  
"Well, can you tell me what happened that day?"  
  
"Around when?" Amber asked.  
  
"When you first came in contact with the Watchers, do you remember what happened?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Part of it, there's really not that much to tell, it was a few days after the funeral, I was feeling about as low as the grass, so I decided to take off where no one would find me. At that age, if you lost your parents, you were taken away to some 'home' of the sort. I dashed through town and down into the woods over by the river. Out of the blue, a man came out from behind a tree and grabbed me, I bit him and ran away, and into the next one. I could tell there was something strange about them from the start, they had the Watcher tattoos on their wrists, one of them grabbed me by the neck. The other one took a----kind of a scapel out his pocket and was deciding where to stab me. So I did the only thing I could, it was the only thing that came to mind...  
  
You see, not too long after the crash, the police figured the guy responsible had been through the house the day before. So they came in and raided the place, I made out of there with only a couple of things. One of them was a strange Korean sword that belonged to my great grandfather, I had it with me when I ranaway, so...Well, you know what I had in mind. But before I could, they came at me again, it was a long fight. So I'm not sure whether I am-------or... I had heard that some people are chosen to become Immortal, and that's what happens shortly after they're killed once... So I'm not sure if one of them got a lucky swing in or...Damn it Duncan, I can't remember, I just can't dammit..."  
  
"Take it easy, calm down, you're putting too much pressure on your mind, you can't think straight," he told her.  
  
"Well it doesn't seem to matter because either way, I can't remember what happened!"   
  
Amber stormed out of the room and ran up the stairs, Duncan heard her door slam shut, that's when he got an idea. The den on the first floor was full of books on just about everything, perhaps there was one in there he could find useful. A couple hours later, Duncan got Amber up and took her back down into the living room.  
  
"Allright, chowderhead, you get me up at 1:30 in the morning for some psychiatric mumbo jumbo, now what?" Amber asked.  
  
"Now...."  
  
Before Duncan could get started, he realized his client was too upright for this to work.  
  
"I need you to remain in a calm state of mind," he said, lying her down on the couch.  
  
"What's all this mental stuff? My problem is I probably died and don't even know it," she said.  
  
"We're going to get to the bottom of that, now try and remain calm," Duncan told her.  
  
"What's all this fuss about calm? I AM CALM!" Amber pounded her fists on the couch.  
  
"You'll have to be calmer than that for this to work," Duncan grunted.  
  
"Allright, allright, I'll try," Amber replied.  
  
Amber laid flat down on the couch and closed her eyes, Duncan made sure everything matched what he read in the book.   
  
"June 24th, 1995, 2:25 P.M., where are you?" he asked.  
  
"Nearing the Rhapsody River, down past the woods down from 43rd Street," Amber subconsciously answered.  
  
"What are your surroundings?" Duncan asked.  
  
"...Acres of forest, hot grounds, the brook's coming into plain sight," Amber replied.  
  
"Do you see anyone?" Duncan asked.  
  
"There's a man coming out from behind a tree, dressed in long black clothing, with a purple tattoo on his wrist. He's grabbing me by the collar, he threatens to kill me, I bite him and make a run for it. Out comes another one, he grabs my throat and pins me against a tree, the first one takes out a long narrow, rusted scapel. I reach into my jacket and pull out my sword and swing at him. I aim at the other to take his head, but the first one grabs me, he throws me up against the tree. I turn and run, but one of them picks me up and throws me downhill, I hit my head on a tree and everything goes black. Then, when I get up, they're still there, I grab my sword and go at them head on, accidentally taking the first one's. Then the second one, and I leave..."  
  
Duncan was waiting for Amber to mention a storm, but either that was all even her subconscious mind could remember, or that was all that did happen, Duncan snapped his fingers and Amber woke up.   
  
"Ohhh, sorry Duncan, I guess I must've dozed off, so, did we get anywhere?" Amber asked.  
  
"Well, I do think you've told me all you know, even subconsciously, and I think you might be on to something here, I'll check with Methos tomorrow and see what he says," Duncan said.  
  
"But do you think it's possible that I'm a------like you?" Amber asked.  
  
"Well, it is a possibility, however, whenever an Immortal takes someone's head, they receive a Quickening, you know what that is?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Uh-uh," Amber shook her head.  
  
"A Quickening, is when your opponent's power enters your body."  
  
"I've seen that, like electrocution," she said.  
  
"Quite so, now, after you beheaded the Watchers, did anything of the sort come up?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I don't remember, I honestly don't remember," Amber replied.  
  
"Well, you've done okay so far, but right now, I think I better put you in bed," Duncan started.  
  
"No way, uh-uh, not me, I've got something to do before the night's over, now in the words of a foolish old man. Parting is such sweet sorrow, and if Mario don't get ya, I'll see ya tomorrow," Amber responded.  
  
The next day, Duncan found Methos in the living room going over some files.  
  
"I finally found the records on all the deceased Watchers, now if we can get Amber to identify the two, maybe we can get somewhere," he said.  
  
"Well, I spoke with Amber last night, she said that in the middle of the brawl with them, one Watcher threw her downhill, she hit her head and passed out. Or so she thinks, I'm still not sure whether she died at that point..." Duncan explained.  
  
"I say, she's one to change her story, I heard you talking to her last night and she didn't say anything of the sort.  
  
"Were you up at 1:30?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No."  
  
"Then you didn't hear the whole thing," Duncan replied.  
  
"And why is that?" Methos asked.  
  
"Well, shortly after she ran to her room, I decided to do some reading and find out about a few things. It turns out that her conscious couldn't have remembered the whole thing, and the rest of the answers lied within the subconscious mind. So, I was reading on how to put someone under," Duncan said.  
  
"Anyone and everyone knows how to do that, it's called a barbituate," Methos said.  
  
"I mean put them into a state of hypnosis,"   
  
"You mean you turned into a psychic shrink?" Methos asked.  
  
"Not exactly, I put her into a somewhat unconscious state of mind and asked her to recreate everything as it happened. She told me everything up to where she beheaded the Watchers, but after that, I guess either that's all that happened, or she somehow blocked it out," Duncan said.  
  
"I see, and what happened after that?"  
  
"She took off and I haven't seen her since," Duncan said.  
  
"That's because I've been trying to stay alive, which means staying out of that monster's sight."  
  
Duncan and Methos turned around and saw Amber standing in the doorway.  
  
"How long have you been listening?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Long enough to realize my 'hind's in a sling when he finds out who I killed," Amber answered.  
  
"Amber, come over here, Methos has the records on the Watchers, now he needs you to identify the two you killed," Duncan said.  
  
"That's terrific, and if he gives me a running start, after I identify them, I might make it to the front door before I get killed," Amber responded.  
  
"I don't think you have to worry, from what you told me, I don't think Methos or Pierson would want to protect the legacy of a Watcher, if they tried to kill you, especially considering you were only 12 at the time," Duncan told her.  
  
"Quite so, some Watchers stick to what they've learned, others tend to take what they know and have for granted, they find out what's cut out for them and they think they're God, ask me, anyone who believes like that deserves to be beheaded," Methos said.  
  
"Wonderful, I'm off the hook there," she sighed.  
  
Methos showed Amber numerous photos of late Watchers, but none of them seemed to match what she remembered.   
  
"Perhaps you forgot some," Duncan said.  
  
"These are all the bios that were produced of them, all the records, every picture," Methos said.  
  
"Well maybe some of them were ruined before you requested seeing them, there has to be a reason why none of these people even remotely look like what you saw," Duncan told Amber.  
  
"Maybe I just blocked that out too, let's face it Duncan, I'm not the best for an accurate description, it could be that what I remember is just what I hoped to remember," Amber said.  
  
"Well, was there anything in particular that made them noticable?" Methos asked, shuffling through the photos.  
  
"Not really, although one of them, one of them had a strange imprint on the side of his nose, it kind of looked like a b," Amber said.  
  
"Aha!" Methos said, "Then here he is Johnathon Meadows."  
  
"Oh yeah, I remember you told me about him," Duncan laughed, "I remember, Methos told me that one day he went up against some guy named Tony the Shark, and old Tony, he always wore a set of brass knuckles that read 'bitch' imprinted on top, like a typewriter key."  
  
"Bitch? On brass knuckles?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yes, turns out he also prefered the word 'Bi' because he had it spelled out on each knuckle, Bi, t, c, and h, anway, Tony swung aiming for his throat, but hit old John in the nose, leaving a real reminder imprinted in his face," Duncan said.  
  
"Yes, and I do believe we're getting somewhere with that, turns out that Meadows never went after someone alone. He always seemed to have connections with another Watcher, Harvey Celiby," Methos said.  
  
"Celiby? Isn't that an act of premarriage or something?" Amber asked.  
  
"No no no," Duncan laughed, "That's celibacy, Celiby is my guess the man who threw you downhill."  
  
"And also possibly the man who did a Jack the Ripper on me," Amber responded.  
  
Methos handed Amber the picture of Harvey, she looked at the picture mortified, not saying anything, she slowly handed the picture back.  
  
"I guess that means we've found them out, do you know anything of their work from this?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, I'll have to call in a few more favors to get those records, but I can already tell you working with people like this was no day at the beach," Methos said.  
  
"Boy, he sure knows how to beat a metaphor to death," Amber said.  
  
"Now you're going after him?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm joking, it's my sense of humor, it's the only thing that keeps me going, especially..."  
  
"Especially when you're scared, that's what it is, isn't it?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, how'd you know?" Amber asked.  
  
"Just a wild guess, but I suppose everybody deals with it their own way, some people get petrified, others hyperventilate, I remember Richie always seemed to go into a cold sweat," Duncan said.  
  
"Huh?" Amber asked.  
  
"Remember when you pointed out that I was his trainer at some point? Well, I can tell you, we had our handful of arguments as well," Duncan said.  
  
"I know, you tried to behead him, twice," Amber said.  
  
"That's right, and in between that as well, somehow he always got into some crazy position, a few times seemed to turn severe, and in his case, it seemed there was no way out. It seemed his mind went into lockup, he became stiff as a board and broke into a cold sweat."  
  
"Well, I don't care how I handle this, it's all going to be history soon enough," Amber said.  
  
"And what do you mean by that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Nothing, excuse me."  
  
Amber took off running, and Duncan had an idea of where she was heading. And like clockwork, after a few minute of running the sink on high, Amber came out of the bathroom drying her mouth.  
  
"Boy, I hope this crack knows a good doctor," she sighed.  
  
"What'd you call me?" Richie asked.  
  
"Oh, you heard," she said.  
  
Down in the livingroom, Duncan was going over a few of the pictures he observed a few nights ago, there was something about Amber in the pictures, but he couldn't put his finger on it.  
  
"So, how'd round 1 go?" Joe asked.  
  
"I think rather well," Duncan said.  
  
"Rather well? What are you, an English teacher?" Joe asked.  
  
"Oh why don't you go lie down?" Duncan irritably asked.  
  
Gun shots were heard from above, Duncan and Joe ran up to see what was going on, Amber jumped off of Richie's bed and busted him in the mouth, he fell down and hit the wall as they came in. Richie got up and felt something loose in his mouth, he spit out two of his teeth into his hand. He jumped up on his feet and grabbed Amber by the throat.  
  
"You little monster, I'm going to tear you apart!" Richie screamed.  
  
"Richie, calm down!" Duncan picked him up and pulled him off her, "What's going on?"   
  
"What's going on? The punk just punched out 2 of my teeth that's what's going on!"   
  
Richie pounced again, but Duncan stopped him.  
  
"Calm down, let me see, open up."  
  
Richie opened his mouth.  
  
"Wider."  
  
Richie opened his mouth wider.  
  
"Wider."  
  
Richie tried again.  
  
"Wider."  
  
"I can't get any wider than this!" Richie exclaimed.  
  
"Calm down, it's just a joke," Duncan laughed, "hmmmmmmmmmm."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Well, it seems that you have a third set of teeth coming in," Duncan said.  
  
"A third set? Is that some kind of sick joke!?" Richie asked.  
  
"Naaaa, not at all," Amber replied, "it happens to certain people, just like some people can bend their joints backwards, and some people can make certain body parts bounce, look at me..."  
  
"Why should I? I already know you're ugly," Richie said.  
  
"I have a breastbone that tends to pop, it happens to only a few people, think about it, you turn over wrong in your sleep, something comes loose and you think you're having a heart attack," Amber replied.  
  
"Quite so, you're just luck you have a second set of teeth allowed to come out," Duncan told Richie.  
  
"Yeah, otherwise you'd probably get mistaken for a hocky player," Amber said.  
  
Richie jumped at her again, but Duncan cut him off halfway.  
  
"Why are you always defending her?" Richie asked.  
  
Duncan put him down and looked at him in the eyes.  
  
"Because someone has to," Duncan calmly replied.  
  
"I'll say this much, I don't mind all the feuding and fussing around here with you guys, but now we've gotta worry about Mario," Amber said.  
  
"Why's that?" Richie asked.  
  
"You don't understand, you don't know Mario, he's willing to accept one failed attack, but a second failed attack and he brings in his henchmen. He's got a bunch of thugs, left and right, they all work for him. He's got a ton of them, all over the joint."  
  
"Like his own mob," Richie said.  
  
"Exactly, Mussolini's got nothing on him," Amber replied.  
  
"Are they Immortals too?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Not in the least, but they're still no company to be around," Amber explained.  
  
Around 4, Duncan came down to the kitchen to find Amber already waiting for him.  
  
"Something up?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah, I have a question, how'd you come to meet him anyway?" Amber asked.  
  
"Who?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Him," Amber replied.  
  
"If you mean Richie then say so, is that who you mean?" Duncan asked.  
  
Amber nodded.  
  
"Started about 7 years ago, caught him after he broke into an antique store," Duncan replied.  
  
"And he didn't try to kill you?" Amber asked.  
  
"Surprised me too," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, well, apparently he must've learned from you, the kid's not too bright but he's no idiot. I should know," Amber said.  
  
"And what do you mean by that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I mean this," Amber pulled her sleeve down, revealing a large purple bruise on her shoulder.  
  
"He did that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Not too long before you came up, that kid must've been born with brass knuckles built into his hands," Amber said.  
  
"Looks painful..."  
  
"These things always look worse than they really are, besides, I hardly feel a thing."  
  
"Probably because your shoulder's gone numb," Duncan said to himself, "just the same, I think I better take you to a doctor."  
  
"A few days ago you said we couldn't get a doctor up here," Amber said.  
  
"That was before I found out that there's a Doctor Myers only a few miles from here," Duncan told her.  
  
"Oh yeah? What is he? A podiatrist or a gynocologist?" Amber asked.  
  
"Neither, he's a regular doctor," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah? No guy named Myers in his right mind would think of going into medical work, and if you were as modern as me, you'd know why," Amber replied.  
  
"Come on, I arranged an appointment for us at 4:45," Duncan said.  
  
"How'd you do that? I just told you now," Amber said.  
  
"I know, but I've been worried about you anyway," Duncan told her.  
  
"You're worried about me? Something's wrong here," Amber sighed.  
  
"Amber are you going to get in the car, or am I going to have to carry you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I never believed in pre marital relationships before, I sure as hell don't now, I'll bite, let's go," Amber said.  
  
So, Duncan took her to Doctor Richard Myers, oddly enough, Amber behaved rather well.  
  
"Especially considering you had to get naked for this physical," Duncan said.  
  
"Hey, I'm 16, I'm from New Jersey, nothing can happen in my life or my body that surprises me," Amber replied.  
  
"You sound rather cheerful," Duncan said.  
  
"I am, rather than being in a house full of perverted men, I'm here in a private office with one professional, and you," Amber said.  
  
"Well Miss Jenzon, you seem to be in rather well health, now is there anything else you've yet to tell us?" Dr. Myers asked.  
  
"Yeah, one more thing, when I go to a gyno, and they put me in the stirrups..."  
  
"Amber!" Duncan exclaimed, "Doctor Myers, I have only known her for a couple of weeks, but I already know that she needs serious help. She goes days on end without eating, her stomach is horrible, she's constantly throwing up, for all we know, the next time she does, she could cut her throat on the inside. On top of that, she suffers from a random lack of sleep, not to mention, that her lack of resistence to violence can only lead to more severe cases of what you've seen today."  
  
"I see, well, to get started, is the nausea all that constant?" Doctor Myers asked.  
  
"No, not all that constant, just every now and then, sometimes it takes days off," Amber replied.  
  
"I see, follow me," he said.  
  
"Where we going?" Amber asked.  
  
"First off, I'm going to examine your throat to see if the nausea has affected it in any way."  
  
After half an hour, Doctor Myers found no damage to her throat from the stomach acids, then he gave her an .18 oz bottle of stomach medicine, she took the lid off and inhaled, and turned green.  
  
"This stuff's supposed to make the nausea go away? Just the aroma of this will bring something up! Come on Duncan, let's get out of here."  
  
"Aren't you forgetting something?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I don't think so, like what?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan picked her up and put her back to a mirror, she had forgotten she was in the gown with the back open.  
  
"Whoa! I see your point, where're my clothes?"  
  
After Amber got dressed, they got out of there, on the way back to the house, something came over Duncan, it distracted him so long, they almost ran off the road, he swung the car around to the corner and came to a stop.  
  
"What's going on?" Amber asked.  
  
"It's Mario, he's close by," Duncan said, looking behind them.  
  
"Where're you going?" Amber asked.  
  
"I'm going to find him, you stay here," Duncan said.  
  
"But Duncan, I'm..."  
  
"You're not Immortal, Amber, he has less chance of finding you before I find him, now please stay put," Duncan told her.  
  
"Allright, I'll stay in the car," she said.  
  
"Good, I'll be back in a little while," he told her.  
  
Duncan drew out his sword and went around the corner, the streets were empty, but he knew Mario was close by, he crept around the corner, and as he swung his sword, it clashed against Mario's.  
  
"I'm surprised you had the guts to show up," Mario said.  
  
"I'm surprised you're out when the sun is up," Duncan replied, "how'd you know to come here anyway?"  
  
"Let's say my boys know where to find you," Mario said.  
  
"And I suppose I'll have to go through all of them before you, huh?" Duncan asked.  
  
"You read me like a book MacLeod," Mario said.  
  
Two thugs grabbed Duncan from behind, he turned around and Mario had disappeared, they started beating the hell out of him, one would knock him over the head, the other would trip him up, one of them took out a gun and aimed at him. At that time, a low growling noise could be heard coming up the road, faster and louder, Duncan's car jump over the curb and onto the next road. It shocked the man, and instead of Duncan, he hit the hood of the car, they took off running when the bullets came after them.  
  
"Amber?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Get in," she said.  
  
"How'd you get here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Didn't you read my rap sheet? I hot wired cars on a daily basis, now let's go," Amber said.  
  
She slammed the accelerator and they were off after the two mobsters, Amber took some unusual detours on the streets. They made a sharp turn and were closing in on a condemed building.  
  
"Something's wrong here, the steering wheel's locked, and the brakes aren't working!" Amber exclaimed.  
  
"What'll we do now?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What we always do in a mess like this," Amber replied.  
  
They threw their car doors open and rolled out just as the car slammed into the building and everything went up in flames.   
  
"Can you believe that? That bitch had the car rigged before we even left today, to blow us up," Amber said.  
  
"Now what?" Duncan asked.  
  
(End of chapter 7, chapter 8's coming up soon.) 


	8. Tampered With

Tampered With  
  
Chapter 8, hope you enjoy  
  
Duncan opened the kitchen door and let Amber in, then he shut the door.  
  
"Whoa, you two look like crap, where've you been?" Joe smiled.  
  
"Trying to get back here without getting jumped," Duncan answered.  
  
"We didn't have too good of luck once the car blew up," Amber gasped.  
  
"Blew up?" Joe asked.  
  
"Yes, turns out one of Mario's mortal henchmen tampered with the car so the brakes wouldn't work, and the steering wheel would lock up at a certain time, it reeks of Mario," Duncan said.  
  
"Sorry, that's just me, I haven't showered in a while," Amber said.  
  
"I mean, it sounds all too familiar to the murders of 1995, I think that this time Mario knows we're onto him so he had one of his henchmen do it, so they wouldn't know," Duncan sighed.  
  
"Are you two allright?" Joe asked.  
  
"We're fine, a bit exhausted but nothing we haven't gone through before," Duncan replied.  
  
"Where's the punk? I wanna tell him how we almost got blown to smithereens," Amber said.  
  
"Leave it to her, we almost go up in smoke, she goes off to tell everyone, nothing seems to get her," Duncan said.  
  
"Is that what bothers you about her?" Methos asked.  
  
"No, it's part of her charm," Duncan replied.  
  
"And then we jumped out of the car just as it smashed into the building and it went up in smoke!" Amber exclaimed.  
  
"That's the last thing Mac needs, to get blown up again," Richie said.  
  
"Again?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yeah, a few years ago he met up with an old enemy of his from the 20's, he planned on blowing up an armored car with a time bomb, Mac decided to get it away from the area as fast as possible," Richie explained.  
  
*Flashback* 1996, Duncan stops the car with just enough time to get out, but the handle comes off the door, the clock reaches 0 and the whole thing blows. Duncan's more or less lifeless body hits the ground next to Cory Raines' car.  
  
"No hard feelings?" Cory asked.  
  
"Oh no, why let a little thing like getting BLOWN UP come between us?" Duncan sarcastically asked.  
  
*End flashback*  
  
"Boy, Duncan just can't get a break can he?" Amber laughed.  
  
"Oh he got his revenge, not too long after that, he decided to..."  
  
*Flashback* Cory tied to a chair, is being carried to the window by Duncan and Richie when Duncan stops.  
  
"I have an idea," he said.  
  
Duncan set off the dentonator and blows up Cory.  
  
"What the hell was that for?!" Cory exploded.  
  
"All in fun Cory boy, all in fun," Duncan smiled.  
  
*End flashback*  
  
"Well, vengance or no vengance, he's still a lot better than some stiffs I've worked with, which reminds me, what happened to you? I heard about you a couple years ago, saying that you planned on dropping by town and I never saw you," Amber said.  
  
"I got killed," Richie said.  
  
"How long does it take for an Immortal to get---whatever, reincarnated, resurrected, whatever you wish to call it?" Amber asked.  
  
"Amber, you don't understand, I was killed as an Immortal," Richie said.  
  
"What? Well, how'd you get back here?" Amber asked.  
  
"That's what I've been trying to figure out, it just seems that one day, someone brought me back from the dead and the tree roots were out of my back," Richie replied.  
  
Richie grabbed his coat and headed for the door.  
  
"Hey Rich," Amber called.  
  
Richie turned around to see what she wanted now.  
  
"I'm the one who brought you back from the grave," she said.  
  
"What?" Richie asked.  
  
"When you didn't show up in town, I figured something was wrong, so I went to the last place you told me you were staying, they said you'd died in a fight, so I cursed you to come back," Amber told him.  
  
"Are you serious?" Richie asked.  
  
"Do you hear me laughing?" Amber asked.  
  
Richie could tell Amber was dead serious about this.  
  
"Let me get this straight, you're the reason that elm tree's out of my back?" Richie asked.  
  
"Yeah, pretty much," Amber responded.  
  
"...Thanks."  
  
"It's the least I could do for an old rival," Amber said, "you remember how we met?"  
  
"Yeah, must've been about six years ago in New Jersey, I remember, my bike broke down, I came into town to make a call to a mechanic and you came running in."  
  
"You threw the officer in through his windshield, then after that, you dribbled me like a basketball," Amber said.  
  
"You jumped up and bit me in the knee," Richie added.  
  
"Yeah, those were the good times, do you remember what that fight was about we had?" Amber asked.  
  
"Huh?" Richie asked.  
  
"You remember, that fight we had, I remember because after you came back from the hospital, you threatened to shove me down in the sewer," Amber said.  
  
"We never really fought about anything, Amber," Richie said.  
  
"We didn't?" Amber asked.  
  
"No, we didn't," Richie repeated, "we just never seemed to get along with each other."  
  
"Yeah, it was a shame, I really liked you," Amber told him.  
  
"I know, it's ridiculous, we like each other but we can't stand each other," Richie said.  
  
"In New Jersey where I come from, that's called marriage," Amber replied.  
  
"Yeah, well around here, it's called family," Richie responded.  
  
"Some family, you four yuppies and me running the operation, we got one man in here who uses a walker to protect legs he doesn't have. We have another guy who is 'split personality, one of them keeps getting blown up, and you, you came back from the dead twice," Amber said.  
  
"Yeah, and you, making all our lives miserable," Richie said.  
  
"What can I say? It's in my contract," Amber replied.  
  
Down in the kitchen, Methos was at the kitchen table having a cup of tea when Duncan came in.  
  
"My backside's asleep," he said.  
  
"Fine," Duncan said, "I'll keep it down."  
  
"You see? What's wrong with that?" Methos asked.  
  
"I'm not sure, and quite frankly, I don't want to find out," Duncan said.  
  
"You heard me say that, what's that tell you?" Methos asked.  
  
"It's quiet in this house, too quiet," Duncan realized.  
  
"Exactly," Methos said.  
  
"Something's wrong," Duncan said, with a cock eye glare in his eyes.  
  
"Well I wouldn't call it something to worry about, it could just be that Amber and Richie found a new quiet way to settle their differences," Methos suggested.  
  
"June 14th, 1996," Richie said, "remember it?"  
  
"Remember? My back's still aching from that lady in the 6 inch heels walking on me!" Amber replied.  
  
"The year after your parents' death, you said Mario had some reason to murder them, and he kept part of that reason buried on the grounds near the river," Richie said.  
  
"I remember, the Sickert River, named after Jack the Ripper, that's where Duncan and I went swimming the other day," Amber realized.  
  
Early the next morning, Richie and Amber headed down to the grounds around the Sickert River.  
  
"Exactly what do you think we'll find?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't know, but I hope we find it before someone finds us," Amber said.  
  
"You okay? You're looking pale," Richie noticed.  
  
"I feel lightheaded," Amber added.  
  
Well, not too far away, Duncan and Joe parked close to Richie's motorcycle and slowly headed downhill to the grounds.  
  
"Are you sure we're in the right place?" Joe asked.  
  
"This is where Richie's note said they'd be, besides, there's only one Sickert River in England, don't you think I'd know it?" Duncan asked.  
  
Just then, something hit Duncan, Richie was closeby, and something was wrong.  
  
"What is it?" Joe asked.  
  
"MAC!"  
  
Duncan and Joe went running down to the grounds over to the river, Richie was holding an unconscious Amber in his arms on the ground.  
  
"Richie, what happened?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I don't know, she just stopped breathing and then..."  
  
Duncan turned Amber over to check for a pulse, heartbeat, something...They took her back to the house and put her in bed, but it was less than a peaceful rest. Amber's body temperature rised terribly, her eyes were turning pink, her pulse was slowing down. Duncan stayed by her side and watched in horror, Richie came in to see what the update was.  
  
"How's she doing?" Richie asked.  
  
"Not too well, she's losing the color of her eyes, she's dehydrated, her pulse is slowing down, her blood pressure's lowering, dammit, what's wrong with her? Why is she dying?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It's making sense," Richie said, as he checked her eye color.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It's called Bylenia, I saw it right after I returned from the dead. I stopped by in a town in Illinois, half the town was quarantined with it, lot of the people were taken to the hospital before they were infected with it. Everyone was scared to death they were entering a new generation of the plague," Richie explained, "the point Mac, is she needs medical help right away."  
  
"Don't you think I've already thought of that? No doctor I take her to is willing to even diagnois the problem, letalone tell me what to do," Duncan said.  
  
"There is a medicine for Bylenia, we won't have to take her to the doctor but we will have to hurry, if it goes on too long, the treatment won't be any help in itself," Richie said.  
  
"How much time do we have?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, there's a way to tell, the blood veins on her wrist have started turning from blue to red, by the time they reach purple, the case is far past curable," Richie said.  
  
Duncan looked at her wrists, they were still bright red, before he could say anything, Richie ran out of the house on his bike and stormed off. Duncan looked out the window as he took off, and noticed there was something else up, the sky was a strange mixture of purple and red, with the clouds bright gold, a hot heavy wind came up. Duncan ran back to Amber, the red in the veins was starting to fade, meaning it wouldn't be long until...  
  
Richie returned in a flash, just as the sky grew dark, he ran in the front door and up the stairs to Amber's room.  
  
"How is she?" Richie asked.  
  
"Look," Duncan said.  
  
Richie looked at Amber's wrists, the veins were going pale red.  
  
"Richie, this is becoming a matter of life or death, did you get the medicine?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, right here," Richie handed Duncan a medium sized heavy brown paper bag.   
  
Duncan took out of it tubes with liquids, and a bunch of needles.  
  
"This one's the cure," Richie picked up a bottle of purple liquid, "the others are for later, get the hypodermic ready."  
  
Richie walked over to Amber and turned her over on her back, she opened her eyes as Duncan came forward with the needle. Amber got in a panic and attempted making a break for it, Richie grabbed her and pinned her on the bed, though she struggled hard to get loose.  
  
"Can you try and calm her down?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Amber listen to me, Duncan MacLeod is an old friend of mine, and you better believe the last thing he'd want to do is hurt you," Richie told her.  
  
Duncan grabbed Amber's arm and injected the medicine, within a matter of seconds, Amber wore down and fell asleep. Richie helped Duncan put her back into bed so she could rest.  
  
"Now what?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Now, she'll sleep for 3 days, and then it'll be over," Richie said.  
  
"You sure?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I told you, I saw half a town infected with this, no one ever died," Richie assured him.  
  
Duncan thought for a minute, then something hit him.  
  
"Why did she act so strange when I approached her with the needle?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, she doesn't quite trust me, shortly after we met, she accused me of poisoning her," Richie said.  
  
"And did you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Sort of," Richie hesitated.  
  
"What do you mean 'sort of'?" Duncan imitated him.  
  
"Well, when we first met, we were just going at each other, you know, pulling all sorts of pranks, anyway, one day, the whole town was chasing her like a rabid beast, I figured the only thing to do would be to calm her down so I took a tranqulizer and injected her," Richie explained.  
  
"Go on," Duncan said.  
  
"And the thing I didn't know was someone has switched the tranqulizer with a hypnotic drug," Richie said.  
  
Duncan was ready to yell at Richie, but he couldn't think of a real reason to yell at him, instead, he thought for a minute.  
  
"Well now what'll we do?" Duncan asked.  
  
Richie picked up one of tubes with a clear blue liquid in it.  
  
"We give her two of these each day for the next 3 days so she won't get dehydrated, and I think it would also be a good idea if we kept watch on her from time to time," Richie said.  
  
"I agree, Richie, do you know what causes this?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, no one knows, normally it comes with no warning," Richie said.  
  
"Are there any early on signs?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, three weeks of random nausea," Richie said.  
  
"WHAT!!?" Duncan asked.  
  
"For some strange reason, whenever someone gets Bylenia, it doesn't matter how many times something comes up, the one good thing the disease does is protect the throat from being cut on the inside," Richie said.  
  
"Three weeks of nausea?" Duncan repeated.  
  
"Usually when someone's under a lot of stress too," Richie said.  
  
"No wonder she's been so sick lately, she had this all along and we didn't know it. No wonder that screwed doctor said there was nothing wrong with her," Duncan realized.  
  
"That doesn't surprise me, the new plague is society," Richie said.  
  
"Richie, I really appreciate what you've done for Amber, I know you don't have too much respect for her, but you saved her life tonight," Duncan told him.  
  
"No problem, I'll tell you something I usually wouldn't tell anyone, the blood between us ain't really all that hot, it's just always been more like lukewarm," Richie said.  
  
"You mean you didn't try to kill each other?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well sure, but in New Jersey, that's just the regular," Richie said.  
  
"She told me she gave you tetanus," Duncan nervously laughed.  
  
"She did, fourteen stitches and fourteen shots," Richie said.  
  
"Oh God, I hope she'll be allright," Duncan said.  
  
"She will be, believe me Mac," Richie told him.  
  
2 days went by, the symptoms seemed to disappear quicker in Amber's case, Richie explained to Duncan that even once Amber recovered, the next couple of days she'd have a hard time moving around considering how much time she spent pretty much dead to the world. Also, that would be another side effect of recovery from Bylenia, a symptom that went away on its own after a few days. Anway, around 5 in the afternoon on the second day, Amber woke up to see Duncan sitting on the chair next to her, and Richie standing over him.  
  
"Hey guys, what's going on?" she quietly asked.  
  
"Amber, are you allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Sure I'm fine, why wouldn't I be?" Amber asked.  
  
"Do you remember what happened 2 days ago?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't know, what day is this?" Amber asked.  
  
"2 days ago, you fell ill with a disease called Bylenia, do you remember?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I remember burning up, and I kept thinking I was going to die, what happened?" she asked.  
  
"It's a new disease, Bylenia comes with no warning other than your being sick to your stomach for the last couple weeks, it can turn fatal if left untreated," Richie said.  
  
"Which is exactly what the doctor was doing," Duncan added.  
  
"No kidding? Well how'd I get over it?" Amber asked.  
  
"Richie found out what it was, he was able to get the medicine for it, he saved your life," Duncan explained.  
  
"Well do either of you mind if I get cleaned up? It's been a while," Amber sighed.  
  
Duncan and Richie looked at each other and exchanged confused looks.  
  
"Something the matter?" Amber asked.  
  
"Uhhhhh, Amber, the other day Richie and I decided that it would be best if you weren't left alone for a while," Duncan said.  
  
"That's okay with me, I've seen 3 gynos, 2 pediatricians, a regular doctor, 17 police officers and 1 psycho Immortal, and they've all said the same thing. 'Take your clothes off', so if I don't mind after all that, I don't mind one of you two loony tunes," Amber said.  
  
Richie picked Amber up, took her into the bathroom, put her on the sink counter and turned on the taps.  
  
"Hey Rich, I wanna thank you for saving my life, I know I was never the nicest person to be around, especially to you," Ambwe said.  
  
"Don't think anything of it Amber, hey listen Amber, I know you think Mac is some kind of ruthless ogre or something of the sort, but, he-----he's really--------he's pretty much normal like everyone else," Richie said.  
  
"Normal? He's 407 years old! How do you define that normal?" Amber asked.  
  
"You know what I mean, you should've seen him right after we put you under with that medicine, he was scared to death you'd die, I thought he was losing it for a while after he started------well you know," Richie said.  
  
"He was crying?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yes he was, he was really worried you weren't going to make it," Richie said.  
  
"Man, I never knew he thought that much of me, that he'd be worried I'd die," Amber said.  
  
Richie turned off the taps and helped Amber undress from her vomit scented clothes (she'd been wearing them for 4 days, at times when her nausea was its worst) and helped her into the tub.  
  
"You have to remember Amber, Mac's lost a lot of his friends, a lot of the people he cares about, and you reminding him of some of those people doesn't help too much either," Richie told her.  
  
"Well I never meant to upset him," Amber said.  
  
"I know, it's strange, you get to know someone for 350 years, and you still don't know about them. He's known you for what, 2 weeks? And it sounds like he's dead serious on what he thinks of you," Richie said.  
  
"Well, that's just people, some you never find out about in a lifetime, and others you can read them like a book within a short about of time," Amber replied.  
  
"Well, listen Amber, I've seen Duncan in cases like this, so don't be surprised if the next few days, you find yourself with a lot less privacy," Richie told her.  
  
"No problem, I'm living in a house with 4.5 men already," Amber responded, "What kind of privacy can I get from that?"  
  
"Listen, I've seen people with Bylenia before, so for the next couple days, you'll probably find it very hard to move around," Richie told her.  
  
"Is that something to worry about?" Amber asked.  
  
"No, not at all, it's all normal when recovering, especially considering you were out for 2 days, that itself is amazing, normally, someone recovering is out cold for 3 days," Richie said.  
  
"Well aren't you worried that I've spread it to you?" Amber asked, "I've had it for almost a month and never even knew it."  
  
"No, it can't be spread by coming in contact with someone, for some reason, it's not as much who has it as much as where it goes. You see, Bylenia somehow, infects one person, then moves off, kinda like a leech, then it goes through one place to the next, infecting certain people at certain times," Richie explained.  
  
"What about Duncan? If he gets it next, he..."  
  
"Don't worry, I know a small nearby under the table drugstore, they seem to know a bunch about Bylenia, but none of the doctors seem to," Richie told her.  
  
"Doesn't that seem strange that the doctors don't know anything about this disease, but your kind of people do? The punks know this but science hasn't even heard of it? Something's screwed here," Amber said.  
  
"And for once, I agree," Richie said.  
  
That evening, Richie came down the stairs with a bunched up pile of what looked like dirty laundry in his hands.  
  
"Richie, what's that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"T-t-t-t-t-laundry," Richie exhaled.  
  
"Laundry? What were you doing? Both bathing with your clothes on!? They're soaking wet," Duncan realized.  
  
"Yeah, no kidding, you try picking a 130 pound somebody out of the tub, and see if you stay dry," Richie said.  
  
"Well, did you go over the plans with her?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yes I did," Richie replied.  
  
"And?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, she's not too hot on the thought of having two men watch her all day, but considering one of them is you, I think it won't be too bad," Richie sighed.  
  
"How is she? I haven't seen her for a few hours," Duncan said.  
  
"She's fine, still somewhat exhausted, but, I think she'll be back to normal tomorrow, the main thing is she gets her rest, Bylenia isn't something to fool around with and it's also not something to rush the cure," Richie explained.  
  
"I'm just glad she'll be allright," Duncan said.  
  
"I know, I told her, Mac...There's something I think you should know."  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
Richie looked at Duncan to tell him, but he froze, he turned away and slowly spit out the words.  
  
"Last year, Amber came to the grave and cursed me out of there, and that's why I'm alive today," Richie said.  
  
"I beg your pardon?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Mac, I made plans to drop by and see her, but I was killed before then, she found out and cursed me so I'd come back to life," Richie said.  
  
"Is that why you've been acting so hospitable to her lately?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, well---------I don't know, all I know is that when I knew her in New Jersey, I couldn't have treated her any worse than had she been you," Richie said.  
  
"Charming," Duncan said.  
  
"All I know is I remember her being the biggest yuppie, especially in 1995, I'll never understand why," Richie said.  
  
"Did you know that in 1995 shortly after her parents were killed, Mario raped her?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What?" Richie looked up.  
  
"He dragged her over to an abandoned spot and raped her, that's something that's followed her around for the last four years, and incase you haven't noticed, lately you've had quite the resemblance to him," Duncan said.  
  
"I'm sorry, I didn't know that, I always just figured she had something in for me," Richie said.  
  
The clock struck 8:00, Richie got up and left, Amber entered the living room.  
  
"Well, you're looking better," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, well we should find out tomorrow if I'm cured, I still feel like crap," Amber said, "if I can tear someone to scrap tomorrow then I'm fine."  
  
"Well, considering how many thugs Mario has working for him, I think Richie and I can grab a few for practice," Duncan replied.  
  
"Hey listen Duncan, I'm sorry I had you worried so badly, I was scared a bit myself, most of the time I was out, but I was terrified I'd die before I got to talk to you, Richie and I were heading down to the Sickert River, Mario's got something to hide and he's got it down next to the river. Richie told me I wasn't looking well but I didn't listen, then it was like death was striking me with boxing gloves. I was worried I wouldn't get a chance to talk to you, then by the time you got me back to the house, I didn't have it in me to talk, then you put me out for 2 days, I'd like to tell you now but I can't, but soon enough I will, providing I can stick around," Amber told him.  
  
"I think that is a pretty safe bet," Duncan said, "and incase things should take a different turn, I'll just use the same curse on you you used on Richie."  
  
"He told you?" Amber asked.  
  
"I say, you're the eavesdropper in this house, I thought you already knew," Duncan laughed.  
  
However, he could quickly see that Amber wasn't in the joking matter, she looked tired and rather upset.  
  
"Look, I'm sorry, I know you're still a little slow on things while you're recovering, so..."  
  
Duncan picked her up and carried her upstairs.  
  
"This is really getting tired," Amber groaned.  
  
"Shuush," Duncan told her.  
  
"You shuush," Amber repeated.  
  
By the time he put her down on the bed, she was already fast asleep, as he stood back up, Amber started laughing in her sleep, apparently it was contagious, Duncan laughed nervously as he left the room. After a few minutes he stopped, then he walked over into the bathroom, and it became a case of deja vu. When Duncan came out, he rolled up his sleeve, the blood veins on his wrist were becoming a light blue, they were fading...  
  
End of 8, 9's up soon. 


	9. Infected

Infected  
  
Disclaimer: Don't you ever learn?  
  
Duncan became aware that he was entering stage one of Bylenia, instead of going into a blind panic, he started thinking, Richie brought back a bunch of needles and liquids from the drugstore, but there weren't enough of the cures, however if Richie was so sure about the disease, surely he had to have had some more around somewhere. Well, the first thing Duncan figured when he saw the tubes was that they were drugs, so, if he didn't know what they were and came across them in Richie's room, that's what he would've thought they were. So, Duncan started thinking, he if had something he didn't want himself to find out about, where would he look?   
  
Same place any disrespectul teenager would hide anything he didn't want someone older to find out, Duncan figured, in the lead box under his bed, Duncan unlocked the bolt and looked in it. He pulled out several objects that didn't please him (condoms, cigarettes, pull out magazine pages, a little black book), he'd nail him for all that when he got back. He grabbed a handful of the tubes with the purple liquid, he filled up the needle, cleaned his arm and injected it. The medicine burnt like acid, but if it worked...Amber was worried about not being around for Duncan, he'd never forgive himself if he wasn't able to be around for her. This disease sounded horrible, even for an Immortal, being relatively new, there's no telling what it could've done to someone like him.  
  
The next morning, Duncan got out of bed early since he was anxious to see if the medicine worked, he turned on the light and rolled up his sleeve, his blood veins were turning dark blue again. He let out a quiet sigh of relief when he heard Richie scream. He heard Richie stomp as he rushed down the stairs and stopped out of breath.  
  
"Richie, is there a problem?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, someone went through my room and tore everything up! There's crap all over my bed and my floor, it looks like..."  
  
"Like someone went through the lead box under your bed?" Duncan smiled.  
  
"EXACTLY!------You?" Richie asked.  
  
"I hope you don't mind," Duncan said, showing Richie his arm, "but I figured I knew where to find another dosage of that medicine."  
  
"Wait a minute, you mean you?" Richie started.  
  
"It came last night, not ten minutes after you left, which reminds me, where'd you go last night anyway?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I had to------pick up something I brought over when I came here," Richie said.  
  
"Really?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yes dammit, I brought a few things over here from New Jersey and I left them in a warehouse down the road when I came up here," Richie said, steaming up.  
  
"Allright, calm down, calm down, I believe you," Duncan said.  
  
Duncan left and headed over to the kitchen, Richie was still stiff and tense from expecting Duncan to carry on about the reast of the stuff he threw all over his room. He turned around to head upstairs when Duncan came back.  
  
"Oh Richie, one more thing," he said.  
  
Duncan handed him a black permanent marker.  
  
"Do us a favor, draw some clothes on those models," he told him.  
  
Richie turned bright red as he headed upstairs, he tossed the marker away, but apparently in the wrong place, it caused a loud noise when it hit. Richie went over to Amber's room to wake her up, however, she seemed pretty much out cold. Richie drew the curtains, letting the sun in.  
  
"Dah! Come on Ryan!" she said.  
  
"Richie," he corrected her.  
  
"Come on you punk, close that dog gone drape before I put YOUR lights out," Amber replied, preparing her fists.  
  
"Oh give it a rest," Richie said.  
  
"Fine, I will," Amber lied back down and put the pillow over her face.  
  
"Come on you," Richie jumped on the bed and grabbed the pillow, "how are you today?"  
  
"I feel like trash," Amber said, kicking at Richie.  
  
"That's natural," Richie told her.  
  
Richie jumped on the bed and sat on her so she couldn't kick.  
  
"Is it also natural to feel like you're suffering a naseous-less hangover when you're recovering from this disease?" Amber asked.  
  
"Good ol' Bylenia," Richie laughed, "anything else?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm hungry, what time is it?" Amber asked.  
  
"6:30," Richie told her.  
  
"Man, that stuff takes a lot out of you, I do have a question though," Amber said.  
  
"What?" Richie asked.  
  
"Am I ever going to be normal again?" Amber asked.  
  
"Of course, don't worry, you'll be back to your annoying self in a week," Richie told her.  
  
"Good, someone's gotta be around to annoy the daylights out of those people down there, you and Mac are the only two who can put up with me and even I'm not sure about you," Amber said.  
  
"What'd you just say?" Richie asked.  
  
"I said you and Mac are the only two who can put up with..."  
  
"Not that, you called him Mac,"  
  
"So what? You guys all do," Amber pointed out.  
  
"Yes, but you never did, you always called him by his full name," Richie said.  
  
"I did not, I called him Duncan, whether he's full or not," Amber replied.  
  
"Sure, but why this all of a sudden?" Richie asked.  
  
"Look, I..."  
  
Amber shoved Richie off of him and stood up on the bed.  
  
"Listen here Redstone," Amber said.  
  
"It's been a while since I heard that one," Richie scoffed.  
  
"Look you jackass, I'm going to tell you something and it's not cuz I trust you, it's cuz I don't have any choice," Amber told him.  
  
"What is it?" Richie asked.  
  
"Well......Until I met Mac, I was pretty much on my own for about four years, I was always on the run, disappearing from the public eye, jumping one town to the next, I never stayed anywhere for more than a few months. Because of that, I've been around the world always hiding, always regretting the thought of going back, I figured everybody had it in for me. Until him, and......I'm not sure if my hormones are just NOW kicking in but.......Something about him that makes me want to burst."  
  
"What? Are you serious?" Richie asked.  
  
"Yeah, that, and at the same time something about him that makes me wanna puke," Amber added.  
  
"That's hormones for you," Richie told her, "but Amber, are you honestly telling me that you're......you're....you're...."  
  
This had come across as a real shock to Richie, he couldn't even finish the sentence, he just kept going back like a broken record.  
  
"I don't know, all I know is this, a man does not live to be over 400 years old without meeting quite a few women, being an Immortal, I don't think he would have any problem with that...but, I don't know if I'm an Immortal too or not, dammit, if I could just remember the aftermath of that fight," Amber said.  
  
"Wait a minute, are you telling me you think Mac has AIDS?" Richie asked.  
  
"No, it's just that I've been raped once before and Mac's been with so many women, if the two of us......" Amber said.  
  
"Surely you're not serious," Richie said.  
  
"Well, over here in England, you don't have to be 18 to go to bed with someone, over here it's legal for me, and I don't want to find out whether or not I am Immortal if it means dying to find out," Amber told him.  
  
Well, for a while, Richie was just speechless, but after a while, he knew that he had to tell Mac about what she told him.  
  
"She what?" Duncan asked.  
  
"She's not suggesting it Mac, she's just saying that she doesn't want to find out the hard way about if you do," Richie told him.  
  
"You know what I hate?"  
  
"What?" Richie asked.  
  
"I hate the fact that arond here whenever someone has something to say, they say it to someone else to tell someone, from now on, if someone's got something to say to someone, they should say it to their face," Duncan said.  
  
"No problem, I already went over it with Richie, I can use more details with you," Amber walked in.  
  
"Richie," Duncan turned to him.  
  
"I know, I know, LEAVE THE ROOM!" Richie pointed, and followed.  
  
"Amber, what's going on?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It's hard to really explain, I don't know what you would call it, but-----I----I like you for some reason more than I thought, and you were really the first person I met that was willing to stay in my life since------anyway, I read that it's legal for someone 16 or older to...you know.......anyway, I figured that if I was going to make sure you'd stay around then I better------but when I was raped by Mario, there was no way I could go and get tested so I don't know if I do have AIDS or not," Amber said.  
  
"Well, I can take you down to the hospital and get you tested, it'll take a few days, but I'd almost guarantee you don't have it," Duncan told her.  
  
"You can't be sure of that Mac," Amber said.  
  
"Well," Duncan thought for a minute, "would it make you feel any better if I went and got tested too?"  
  
Amber didn't answer him, but he could tell it would be the only way she'd go, so they rolled out of the driveway and down to the hospital, Amber started crying on the way down, Duncan could tell she was scared, truth be known, he was too, he was scared for her, and if the test turned out to be positive, he'd kill Mario faster than someone could say dead man walking.  
  
They got to the hospital and Duncan went to speak to the nurse at the desk, but Amber followed him.  
  
"Can I help you?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, we have a 2:15 appointment for an AIDS blood test," Duncan said.  
  
"Your name?" she asked.  
  
"Duncan MacLeod."  
  
The nurse turned to Amber.  
  
"And you, sweetie?"  
  
Amber looked down at the desk and didn't answer...  
  
"She's my fiance," Duncan lied.  
  
"Oh, I see, you want to make sure you're safe for your wedding night," the nurse said.  
  
"Yeah, that's it," Duncan replied.  
  
"Well, Doctor Rucker will be with you two shortly, take a seat," the nurse told them.  
  
Duncan took Amber to the other side of the room and sat down, Amber brought her head up, Duncan could tell she was still crying.  
  
"Hey, don't worry, Amber, everything's going to be allright," Duncan assured her.  
  
"How can you be sure? What if I do have it?" Amber asked.  
  
"Don't worry Amber, even if the test comes back positive, you still won't be able to get rid of me," Duncan said.  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Of course, hell, I'm not scared of being infected, in any case that I do so what? I come back in five minutes," Duncan said.  
  
He hoped that his little humor would help ease up Amber.  
  
"But what happens to me?" Amber asked.  
  
"Don't worry, doctors are coming up with new facts on AIDS everyday so they can find a cure and in the meantime, they're working on vaccines and..."  
  
"But those are for early on cases, we're talking four years!" Amber exclaimed.  
  
"Calm down Amber," Duncan said.  
  
"Calm down? I could die any day Duncan," Amber said, "what's going to happen then?"  
  
"Then..........you'll be with your parents again, Amber....Even if you do have AIDS, I'm not going to love you any less, do you understand?" Duncan asked.  
  
Amber looked away from Duncan trying to avoid an answer, at that point, they were told to see the doctor in room 113. Doctor Rucker took the blood samples and left the two in privacy for a minute so they could talk.  
  
"Amber, I'm sorry, I just don't know what to say," Duncan said.  
  
"I do, it was nice knowing you," Amber replied.  
  
"Amber don't talk like that, if you allow yourself to accept the fact you're dying you will," Duncan said.  
  
"How would you know? You're gonna live forever," Amber told him.  
  
"Because I've lived longer than you have Amber, I've seen more people go through hell than you have!"   
  
At that point, Amber lost it, she fell on the floor, but Duncan caught her, Amber broke out crying and became hysterical. Duncan put her on the exam table and set her down.  
  
"I'm sorry, Amber, I didn't mean to point that out, it's just this whole thing is driving me crazy," Duncan told her.  
  
"Yeah? What do you think it's done for me? I have no one to trust, my enemy wants me dead in the ground, and he could've already given me AIDS, and on top of that, I have to stay with your crazy friends, wondering when they're going to try and kill me," Amber said.  
  
"Look, I'm tired of this, why don't we discuss something else to stall for time?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Why not? I've still got 71 hours and 45 minutes left until the results," Amber sighed.  
  
"Forget about the results, Amber, it'll be allright," Duncan said.  
  
"I've heard that one before," Amber replied.  
  
Duncan took her back to the house, Richie opened the door as he saw Duncan already had his hands full.  
  
"What happened to her? They take too much blood?" Richie asked.  
  
"No, she passed out on the way back, and I'm guessing you know something about that," Duncan replied.  
  
"Yeah, all natural, at least for the next week," Richie responded.  
  
"I kind of figured that, because right before she passed out, she said she felt like throwing up again," Duncan said.  
  
"So, what did the doctor say?" Richie asked, as he helped Duncan set Amber on the couch.  
  
"We won't get the results for 3 days," Duncan said.  
  
"3 days? Are you serious?" Richie asked.  
  
"Do you hear me laughing?" Duncan asked, exasperated.  
  
"How'd she take the news?" Richie asked.  
  
"About as well as she did when she found out that Mario had the 'Godfather' treatment for her," Duncan answered.  
  
"What?" Richie asked.  
  
Duncan ran his hand across his throat and growled a cut-throat sound.  
  
"You told her that?"   
  
"I didn't get around to it, she knew, actually, she took this about as well as she did when she told me what Mario did."  
  
"Oh...."  
  
"I tell you, if I ever get my hands on that guy, I'm gonna," Duncan turned his head to look at Amber and found her missing, "where'd she go?"  
  
"What?" Richie asked.  
  
"Amber, where'd she go?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I don't know, I didn't see her leave," Richie replied.  
  
"Well she didn't just get up and leave, Richie, she has to be somewhere," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, but where?" Richie asked.  
  
There was a dead silence, they heard people talking from the next floor up.  
  
"Why aren't you playing in the traffic? Something wrong?"  
  
"Where's your car?"  
  
"Why? We going somewhere?"  
  
*Moans and screams*  
  
"There seem to be hooligans terrorizing the neighborhood."  
  
"No, it's the dead, they've come back to life."  
  
"What the hell is that?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't know, but I'm going to find out, come on," Duncan said.  
  
(End of 9, hopefully 10 will be up soon.) 


	10. The Truth

The Truth  
  
Chapter 10  
  
Duncan and Richie stormed into Amber's room, but they couldn't find her.  
  
"Amber, where'd you go?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Up here!"  
  
They looked up and saw her stuck on the chandelier.  
  
"How did you get up there?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Never mind, you wouldn't believe me if I told you," Amber told them.  
  
"Get down before you get hurt," Richie told her.  
  
"Okay, you asked for it," she said.  
  
Amber let go and dropped in Duncan's arms.  
  
"What was all that screaming?" he asked.  
  
"Bad movie on cable," Amber said.  
  
Amber grabbed the remote and turned on the screen, Return of the Living Dead PT II was on.  
  
"I figured maybe a movie would get my mind off of--------you know," she said.  
  
"I see, Richie, can I see you out in the hall for a minute?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What for?" Before Richie could finish the sentence, Duncan grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and headed out the door.  
  
"Thank you," he said.  
  
Duncan dragged Richie out the door and into the hallway.  
  
"What is it?" Richie asked.  
  
"I think the best thing we can do in Amber's case right now is keep her occupied for the next couple of days, until the test results come in, then she'll have nothing to worry about," Duncan said.  
  
"How are we supposed to do that?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't care how you do it, just make sure you do it, I'm going down to talk to Joe, you stay up here and keep her company," Duncan told him.  
  
"What do you want me to do?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't know, talk to her, throw things, dance....I've got an idea, you keep her company while she watches that movie...after that, find something else that'll keep her busy," Duncan said.  
  
"I'll try, but I promise nothing," Richie told him.  
  
Richie went back into Amber's room and tried to think of something to say, he turned to the screen and became confused.  
  
"What are those people doing?" he asked.  
  
"They're trying to get out of town before the zombies eat their brains, one zombie climbed on top of the car, got his hand ripped off when they rolled up the window. Now they're all playing a game of hot potato with his hand," Amber replied.  
  
"Sounds good," Richie said.  
  
"You think that's good, just wait till they throw it out and the hand gives them the middle finger," Amber responded.  
  
Well, Richie figured the movie would keep her mind occupied for about an hour or so, so he dropped on the couch next to her to watch the flick. Meanwhile...  
  
"I just don't know what to do, Joe, Mario's got hundreds of henchmen all around the place, for all we know, we could be surrounded and not know it," Duncan said.  
  
"So what's the problem? They try an' muscle in...just blow 'em full of holes," Joe said.  
  
"Oh yeah, good idea, any suggestions?" Duncan sarcastically asked.  
  
"Down the hallway to the right, turn at the corner, beside the room with the curtains in the doorway, there's a chest full of guns, revolvers, shotguns, pistols, rifles, automatics, I think there's even a bazooka in there," Joe said.  
  
"Are you serious?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Where do you think I got this?" Joe pulled a 22. revolver out of his pocket.  
  
"What about ammo?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Bottom drawer, it's a false bottom, full of bullets, magazines, I think Richie had a good idea when he reserved this place," Joe said.  
  
"He's smart enough to find a place that already has 20 cars in the garage, the last one blew up," Duncan said.  
  
"And 14 motorcycles," Joe added, "the house has more floors than a hospital, there's guns and ammo everywhere, wouldn't be surprised if Maro's henchmen got in here and got blown to bits."  
  
While Joe was talking, Duncan came across a book on the table, called The After House.  
  
"This is the book you've been trying to finish reading?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well it's the same title, but it's not my book, mine's a small moldy paperback, this thing on the other hand," Joe said.  
  
"Looks interesting."  
  
However, no sooner had Duncan said those words and opened the cover flap, shots rang out from it and hit Duncan in the chest!  
  
Richie and Amber came running down the back stairs in response to the shots.  
  
"What's going on down here?" Richie asked.  
  
"Who got murdered?" Amber added.  
  
"Not me," Duncan sarcastically responded.   
  
Richie and Amber turned to see him with 3 holes in his jacket, going out through the back.  
  
"What happened to you?" Amber asked.  
  
"That's what I'd like to know," Duncan said.  
  
"You opened it, that's what happened," Richie said.  
  
"I beg your pardon?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Mac......that's a zip gun bomb," Richie pointed out.  
  
"A zip gun bomb?"  
  
"Yeah, they're made to look like books, but when you open the cover it goes off, damn!" Richie said.  
  
"Richie, where the hell did you get this?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I told you I brought some things over from the warehouse, that included 18 guns, 22 magazines, 2 containers of triazoak acid, and about 300 of those little pills."  
  
"Ya get shot in the chest by one of these, it's more than a pill," Duncan said.  
  
"Wait a minute, that's where you went the other night?" Amber asked.  
  
"No, I brought them over from the drugstore in New Jersey before I came here, I brought them to the house the other night," Richie explained.  
  
"Triazoak acid?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"What do you know? I thought they stopped making it," Amber replied.  
  
"Mac..."  
  
"Richie, keep your eye on her," Duncan told him.  
  
Richie went around the corner and nabbed Amber and took her back upstairs.  
  
"Should I call Methos in?" Joe laughed.  
  
"I'll be allright in a minute, although I must say, it's been a few decades since I've been blasted into Swiss cheese by one of these," Duncan replied.  
  
"Are you sure Mac will be allright?" Amber asked.  
  
"Don't worry, he'll be fine, he's been through worse, I remember one time in particular he told me about, it wasn't all that hot," Richie said.  
  
*Flashback* Duncan looked out the window in Joe's apartment.  
  
"First he shot me, then he tried to blow me up, now he could be out there waiting with a rifle," Duncan said.  
  
"Rifle?" Joe asked.  
  
*End flashback*  
  
"Man, zip gun bombs, I ain't seen those in a while," Amber said.  
  
"Really? I thought you knew about the stash in the drugstore, there were a ton of them under the floorboards," Richie replied.  
  
"That reminds me, we never did find out what Mario had buried near the river, did we?" Amber asked.  
  
"Nope, and as far as I'm concerned, if Mario wants to bury something out there, he can, besides, we already have enough evidence to have him hanged, burnt at the stake, disembowled, tarred and feathered, sent upstate on a rail and decapitated on the guillotine," Richie said.  
  
"Guillotine? How old are you? They haven't used that since 1977 in France," Amber said.  
  
"I know, that's how awful he is," Richie said.  
  
"You're telling me, I had to--------you know, with him," Amber told him.  
  
Richie didn't want Amber to start thinking about the test results, so he tried to think of something that would change the subject.  
  
"That couldn't have been too pleasant, from what I hear, he's so ugly, he makes sundials crack," Richie nervously laughed.  
  
"You're trying to cheer me up...well it's working," Amber said, "he's more ugly in between than on top I'll say that. Of course, I haven't gone to bed with men before, I guess they all look that way."  
  
"Like what?" Richie asked.  
  
"You're a man, you tell me," Amber replied.  
  
Richie looked down, looked back up, didn't say anything, turned around and mouthed 'ohhhh'.  
  
"So you've never-----seen that part of someone," Richie realized.  
  
"I dropped out of school before I took Biology, so......" Amber replied.  
  
Richie tried to think of something to change the subject, but his mind went blank.  
  
"Uhhhhhh....I heard that shortly after you moved in here, Joe walked in on you in the shower..."  
  
"I would've scratched his eyes out, unfortunately, he had his insurance policy with him."  
  
"Insurance?"  
  
"Duncan MacLeod of the MacLeod clan, 180 pounds of Immortal muscle that can turn my face into grease on the concrete if I killed Joe," Amber replied.  
  
Both remained quiet for a few minutes, Richie tried to think of something to say, but he couldn't, finally, Amber broke the silence.  
  
"Look, I'm tired of discussing this stuff, there's supposed to be an all-night long Living Dead marathon on cable so...You wanna see?" Amber asked.  
  
"Sure, what's on after this?" Richie asked.  
  
"First it's Return Part III, then they go to Beyond the Living Dead and City of the Living Dead," Amber replied.  
  
"Sounds like a plan to me."  
  
The next day, Richie came down to the kitchen, only to come face to face with Duncan.  
  
"Sleep well, darling?" he laughed.  
  
"Very funny, you told me to keep her company, remember?" Richie asked.  
  
"I remember, I'm only pulling your legs, so what happened? You 2 conk out during the gore fest?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Na, the movie marathon ended about 4 or 5 today, I was dead tired and realized Amber had already passed out, so I put her in bed and went over to my room," Richie answered.  
  
"Well how was she last night?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Okay I guess, she was pretty quiet throughout the night," Richie yawned.  
  
"Quiet? I'm 6 rooms down and I couldn't get to sleep until 2 in the morning because she was talking so much," Duncan said.  
  
"Oh......I was so tired, I guess I didn't hear her," Richie responded.  
  
"Well. I kept hearing her mutter on and on about how one day, the government IS going to find a way to bring the dead back to life, without even thinking of a way to re-dispose of them again," Duncan said.  
  
"She kept you up huh?" Richie asked.  
  
"I was dead tired at 11, and I wasn't out until about 3:00, all night long, I kept tossing and turning," Duncan said, "all that carrying on, then the zombies, and the screaming, and the gunshots."  
  
"Well if the noise is bothering you, I'd be glad to trade rooms with ya," Methos walked in the kitchen.  
  
"How long have you been standing there?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Long enough to know, your room sounds better than mine," Methos said.  
  
"What're you talking about? All that noise," Duncan said.  
  
"And it just so happens, I like noise, it helps me relax, I know I'm not dead," Methos said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I'm 5,000 yaers old, Immortal or no Immortal, you don't live as long as I have without considering the alternatives," Methos told him.  
  
"Wait a minute, you're telling me you want to move into my bedroom?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yes, do you have a problem with that?"   
  
"You're a sick man, Methos," Duncan told him.  
  
"All part of my charm," Methos said.  
  
"Last night was hell," Richie said.  
  
"Last night was easy, it's the next 2 days that are going to be hell," Duncan said, "Amber's going to be anxious to see the results, the thought of the whole thing's got her scared half to death."  
  
"Considering whether or not she's Immortal, you could catapult both halves to the other side, and they'll still bounce back like a boomerang I'll bet," Methos said.  
  
"Richie, I think we better make sure that she doesn't start getting her mind occupied about that test, we'll have to keep her busy," Duncan said.  
  
"Well if it's work you need her to do, I've got a few things down in the cellar I think should be..."  
  
"Not that, Methos, we just have to make sure she doesn't get obsessed about the next 53 hours," Duncan said, "to her, the next couple days could mean the last few days of her life."  
  
"Well what am I supposed to do this time around?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't care, just keep her busy, do anything, talk, play cards, dance, swim...that's it, that's it, Richie..."  
  
"Oh no! Not that Mac, anything but that," Richie said.  
  
"Are you sure? From what I heard, she gets a real kick out of knocking out guys and putting them in dresses," Duncan told him.  
  
"Mac, at this rate, I'd rather have her put me in garters, a pushup bra and a see-through skirt, and dump me in the cemetery, at midnight, than go swimming with her," Richie said.  
  
"What's the matter?" Duncan smiled, anxious to hear something embarrassing.  
  
"Never mind, but......what if she doesn't want to go swimming?" Richie asked.  
  
"She will, believe me, I've seen her, she swims like a shark," Duncan said.  
  
"Well what if she changes her mind and doesn't want to go?" Richie asked.  
  
"Well then find something else to do, take her wrestling, take her to the gym, take her boxing even, just keep her busy, I don't want her stressing about that test," Duncan said.  
  
Richie didn't say anything, he went to wake up Amber, but when he got to the hall, he heard her screaming. Amber came running down the stairs crying, Richie was ready to kill someone if necessary.  
  
"Amber, what's wrong?" Richie asked.  
  
Amber tried to tell him, but over her screaming and crying, she couldn't be understood, Duncan came in to see what was the problem.  
  
"Richie, what's going on?" he asked.  
  
"Man, I have no idea," Richie said.  
  
Amber couldn't talk, only scream, and she kept pointing upstairs, Duncan was guessing the problem was in her room. He told Richie to keep an eye on her while he checked it out, a few minutes later, he came back down and whispered something in Richie's ear. Richie's facial features stretched out in disgust when he heard it.  
  
"Amber, has this ever happened before?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No! It hasn't!" she replied.  
  
"Richie, bring the car around," Duncan told him.  
  
"What're you going to do?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'm going to find a good gynecologist and take her," Duncan said.  
  
While Richie got the car, Duncan tried to think of a way to explain this one, it wasn't as if he never found out about it before, but Amber was 16, why was it just happening to her now?  
  
{It goes against everything I heard in health,} he thought.  
  
Duncan took her to Doctor Jessica Webber, a professional in the business for 18 years, Duncan waited outside, feeling a bit embarrassed, shook up, and plain stupid. Amber lived in a house full of men, there was no way this could be explained. It was then that Duncan realized his left leg was shaking from a case of the nerves, he put it down, and his right automatically came up in its place, shaking like mad. Duncan, feeling even more stupid, put both his feet down, and they both came up and tied in a knot, still shaking. Duncan grabbed both his feet, trying to stop the shaking when Doctor Webber came out.  
  
"Hello," he nervously said.  
  
"Hello...do you need to see Doctor Standon down the street?" she laughed.  
  
"Oh no," Duncan laughed it off.  
  
Duncan put his feet down and stood up.  
  
"So, how'd it go?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well she seems to be normal, but looking at her history, she's been quite sick between the years of 1992 and 1994. However, she proves to be very healthy," Doctor Webber said.  
  
"Yeah, like a mule," Duncan said out the side of his mouth, "but what I don't understand is...Women get this when they're......12, 13, 14...Why is she just getting it now?"   
  
"Well, I don't find this to be her first time, she got it a couple of times when she was 12, however, at that point, she was in a coma, so she wasn't aware of it. In between then and now, it seems either she's been going without eating or she's been working far too hard physically. Those are 2 things that will stop a woman's menstrual cycle," Doctor Webber said.  
  
"That can't be good," Duncan said.  
  
"Not at all, you see, during this time, the blood includes clots, you and I know that clotted blood isn't always good, so the body has to rid itself of some clots. However, it seems that she's finally winning the battle against her body, tell me, what's her current weight?"   
  
"I don't know, I guess about 130 pounds," Duncan said.  
  
"I thought so, for someone of her height and age, she should be at least 12 pounds heavier, and she told me that just recently she's been gaining any weight at all from the last few years. I think that's why it started up all of a sudden," the doctor said.  
  
"Well, is she going to be allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Of course, tell me, are you her father?" Doctor Webber asked.  
  
"I...."  
  
Duncan bit on his words, he had to think of something to say, he knew it wouldn't be too respectful to her late father if he said yes, however, he couldn't just give the doctor the impression he was her boyfriend or anything, so...  
  
"Actually, I'm her guardian, I took her in after her father died, but I haven't gotten the papers yet that sign me as her legal guardian yet, I knew her father for about 21 years," Duncan said.  
  
"I see, do you live alone?"   
  
"No, not alone," Duncan hesitated, "but there aren't really any women around the house...yet! I---my fiance is expected to come over in about a week, and she's bringing her 2 older sisters with her for a vacation."  
  
"I see, well, until she comes, I'm assume you know what to do," Doctor Webber said.  
  
"I'm afraid I do," Duncan gritted his teeth, "is there anything else I should expect from her during this week?"  
  
"Yes, I would recommend you keep an eye out for mood swings, fatigue, chills, and don't be surprised if she goes on eating binges. Matter of fact, you should get her to eat more, if she doesn't, she'll get sick," Doctor Webber said.  
  
"Allright..."  
  
As Duncan started to walk away, he turned around and headed back, slowly.  
  
"Do you have any pamphlets on AIDS?" he asked.  
  
"Why do you ask?" Doctor Webber asked.  
  
"Well, Amber is getting......you know, around that age, and I want her to realize the dangers...also, she knows a boy, and I think he might have it, but I don't exactly remember what all the symptoms are," Duncan lied.  
  
"Yes, come with me, Amber's getting dressed."  
  
"Uh.....actually, I don't want her to know right off hand, what I'm doing, she's already mad because I'm down her back about dating all the time and..."  
  
"I see, we keep some extra pamphlets and the front desk, come on."  
  
Doctor Webber took Duncan's hand and led him back around from, Amber slowly opened the door, apparently, she'd been standing there the whole time and listening. She slowly and nervously made her way around to the next room, where Doctor Willona Hart was going through some files.  
  
"Excuse me, do you mind if I use your phone? I have to call someone," she said.  
  
"Of course, it's right over there...I have to see a lady upstairs, so I'll give you some privacy," she told her.  
  
Amber waited till the doctor went upstairs and then she dialed.  
  
"Hello....Richie, it's me, I need you to come down here and get me....no don't...don't argue...yes I'm fine, but I need you to come down here and get me...I'm down at the gynecologist's at 1759 Mockingbird Lane...Well, can you slip away without them knowing? Okay, thank you, sure, goodbye."  
  
With that, Amber stormed out of the room and out into the hall, she bashed into Duncan and got knocked on the floor.  
  
"Amber are you allright?" he asked, picking her up off the floor.  
  
Amber didn't want to sound suspicious, so she did what came naturally.  
  
*Hiccup* "Four score and seven years ago, *hiccup* we the people of Germany shall overcome *hiccup* seeend mooore coppps. Thank you and good evening."  
  
"Amber wake up, are you allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Sure, what happened?" Amber asked.  
  
"I'm not sure, but I think you went partially into the Gettysburg Address, the Preamble of the Constitution, Return of the Living Dead, and David Letterman," Duncan replied.  
  
"Oh...so, what'd the doctor say?"   
  
"She didn't tell you?" Duncan realized.  
  
"Yeah, I thought they only did that in hospitals when you ask what your temperature is."  
  
"Well...I'll tell you when we're in the car," he said.  
  
"Please, what have you to be embarrassed about? All the people here are women....well, except you...Besides, you better tell me now....you might not get a chance later," Amber mumbled.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
Amber jumped, Duncan knew something was up, the only time she jumped like that was when he was about to start yelling, but he wasn't mad as if he'd heard it, he was confused since she was mumbling, he couldn't understand her.  
  
"I said...uh....ohhh my...uni," Amber lied.  
  
Duncan was about to ask, 'uni?' But, he knew everyone had a name for it, so why bother asking? he figured.  
  
As they headed out, Duncan got a strange feeling, he heard a lot rumble, up came a brand new motorcycle painted neon green, and making a hell of a buzz. The driver stopped and started fidgeting with his helmet to get it off.  
  
"Richie, what are you doing here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Mac," he called.  
  
"Richie, how'd you know we'd still be here?" Mac asked.  
  
Now Richie had to think, he knew Amber didn't expect this, so he had to come up with a lie, fast.  
  
"Uh.....Methos....is at the house yelling his head off something awful," Richie laughed.  
  
"Methos is always yelling something awful, tell him to take 2 aspirin and go to sleep for 15 hours," Duncan said.  
  
"No no no," Richie laughed through his teeth, "it's not that. He's yelling because...he's already ready to move into your room, but he says he won't because 'you left all your junk in it still'. And I told him 'he's gone to the doctor', and Methos said 'Yeah well I don't care, he's slowing me down, move it, move this junk ou tof here'. So we're trying to move everything, but...we can't move a thing, everything's so damn heavy, like it's bolted down, so Methos said 'get his butt back up here and tell him either he moves it, or I give him the dropkick in the 'dishpan.' So I said, 'look, I'll go and get Mac, and give him the message'. And Methos has just gone crazy, I swear, he said 'You do that kid, you do.'"  
  
However, there was something in it Duncan wasn't buying.  
  
"Why does he sound like a dragon all of a sudden? Or are you just doing that to be funny?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, when I told Methos I'd come and get you, he was downing a jar of hot peppers, and a tequila to wash it down, and he said it with his mouth full," Richie said.  
  
"That's Methos for ya, the guy gets to be 5,000, he wants to try anything and everything," Duncan said, "allright, let's go. I'll have my way with the old bat."  
  
"Wait a minute, I just remembered, I forgot to give Richie the keys," Amber said.  
  
"The keys?" Duncan asked.  
  
"The keys?" Richie repeated, "Oh! Oh! The keys!"  
  
"Yeah, last night, he put a pair of spare keys for his bike on the table, I forgot to give them back what with...all in all," Amber said.  
  
"That's understandable," Duncan said.  
  
Amber slipped out of the car and ove to Richie, and started muttering so he wouldn't hear her.  
  
"How'd you think to come up with that so fast?" Amber asked.  
  
"You never told me what floor to get you on, and I figured I'd run into Mac, so I better have a good lie ready," Richie told her.  
  
"Very good, I'll see you at home," Amber said.  
  
"Wait a minute, why'd you want me to come down and get you in the first place?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'll tell you later, we stick around too long, he'll get suspicious," Amber muttered.  
  
Amber got into the car, Duncan couldn't realize how quiet she was on the way home, he didn't want to ask any embarrassing questions, she had already gone through so much anyone else would scoff at. But then, he started thinking, back to where Mario's henchmen were on him, when Amber came up, they seemed scared half to death when she came up in his car. That thing was so loud, as well as the bullets, they took off running like mad. Just then, Duncan got an idea, he wasn't going to say anything just yet, he'd wait until they got home.  
  
(End of 10, hopefully 11 will be up soon.) 


	11. Pass the Sugar and Arsenic Pt I

Pass the Sugar and Arsenic Pt I  
  
Amber waited till the doctor went upstairs and then she dialed.  
  
"Hello....Richie, it's me, I need you to come down here and get me....no don't...don't argue...yes I'm fine, but I need you to come down here and get me...I'm down at the gynecologist's at 1759 Mockingbird Lane...Well, can you slip away without them knowing? Okay, thank you, sure, goodbye."  
  
With that, Amber stormed out of the room and out into the hall, she bashed into Duncan and got knocked on the floor.  
  
"Amber are you allright?" he asked, picking her up off the floor.  
  
Amber didn't want to sound suspicious, so she did what came naturally.  
  
*Hiccup* "Four score and seven years ago, *hiccup* we the people of Germany shall overcome *hiccup* seeend mooore coppps. Thank you and good evening."  
  
"Amber wake up, are you allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Sure, what happened?" Amber asked.  
  
"I'm not sure, but I think you went partially into the Gettysburg Address, the Preamble of the Constitution, Return of the Living Dead, and David Letterman," Duncan replied.  
  
"Oh...so, what'd the doctor say?"   
  
"She didn't tell you?" Duncan realized.  
  
"Yeah, I thought they only did that in hospitals when you ask what your temperature is."  
  
"Well...I'll tell you when we're in the car," he said.  
  
"Please, what have you to be embarrassed about? All the people here are women....well, except you...Besides, you better tell me now....you might not get a chance later," Amber mumbled.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
Amber jumped, Duncan knew something was up, the only time she jumped like that was when he was about to start yelling, but he wasn't mad as if he'd heard it, he was confused since she was mumbling, he couldn't understand her.  
  
"I said...uh....ohhh my...uni," Amber lied.  
  
Duncan was about to ask, 'uni?' But, he knew everyone had a name for it, so why bother asking? he figured.  
  
As they headed out, Duncan got a strange feeling, he heard a lot rumble, up came a brand new motorcycle painted neon green, and making a hell of a buzz. The driver stopped and started fidgeting with his helmet to get it off.  
  
"Richie, what are you doing here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Mac," he called.  
  
"Richie, how'd you know we'd still be here?" Mac asked.  
  
Now Richie had to think, he knew Amber didn't expect this, so he had to come up with a lie, fast.  
  
"Uh.....Methos....is at the house yelling his head off something awful," Richie laughed.  
  
"Methos is always yelling something awful, tell him to take 2 aspirin and go to sleep for 15 hours," Duncan said.  
  
"No no no," Richie laughed through his teeth, "it's not that. He's yelling because...he's already ready to move into your room, but he says he won't because 'you left all your junk in it still'. And I told him 'he's gone to the doctor', and Methos said 'Yeah well I don't care, he's slowing me down, move it, move this junk ou tof here'. So we're trying to move everything, but...we can't move a thing, everything's so damn heavy, like it's bolted down, so Methos said 'get his butt back up here and tell him either he moves it, or I give him the dropkick in the 'dishpan.' So I said, 'look, I'll go and get Mac, and give him the message'. And Methos has just gone crazy, I swear, he said 'You do that kid, you do.'"  
  
However, there was something in it Duncan wasn't buying.  
  
"Why does he sound like a dragon all of a sudden? Or are you just doing that to be funny?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, when I told Methos I'd come and get you, he was downing a jar of hot peppers, and a tequila to wash it down, and he said it with his mouth full," Richie said.  
  
"That's Methos for ya, the guy gets to be 5,000, he wants to try anything and everything," Duncan said, "allright, let's go. I'll have my way with the old bat."  
  
"Wait a minute, I just remembered, I forgot to give Richie the keys," Amber said.  
  
"The keys?" Duncan asked.  
  
"The keys?" Richie repeated, "Oh! Oh! The keys!"  
  
"Yeah, last night, he put a pair of spare keys for his bike on the table, I forgot to give them back what with...all in all," Amber said.  
  
"That's understandable," Duncan said.  
  
Amber slipped out of the car and over to Richie, and started muttering so he wouldn't hear her.  
  
"How'd you think to come up with that so fast?" Amber asked.  
  
"You never told me what floor to get you on, and I figured I'd run into Mac, so I better have a good lie ready," Richie told her.  
  
"Very good, I'll see you at home," Amber said.  
  
"Wait a minute, why'd you want me to come down and get you in the first place?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'll tell you later, we stick around too long, he'll get suspicious," Amber muttered.  
  
Amber got into the car, Duncan couldn't realize how quiet she was on the way home, he didn't want to ask any embarrassing questions, she had already gone through so much anyone else would scoff at. But then, he started thinking, back to where Mario's henchmen were on him, when Amber came up, they seemed scared half to death when she came up in his car. That thing was so loud, as well as the bullets, they took off running like mad. Just then, Duncan got an idea, he wasn't going to say anything just yet, he'd wait until they got home.  
  
Duncan pulled into the driveway, with Richie only a few seconds behind them, Duncan headed in the front door, at the time Joe was coming down the stairs.  
  
"What the hell is going on around here? I go into Amber's room to borrow a screwdriver, and it looks like someone got stabbed!" Joe said.  
  
"Did you ever date a woman who could at times act like a real bitch?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Sure, but that was monthly," Joe replied.  
  
"Yeah, well it just now got to Amber," Duncan said.  
  
"I resent that, I'm no bitch," Amber said.  
  
"I didn't say you, Amber, I was talking about the women Joe dates," Duncan assured her.  
  
"Thanks a lot," Joe spit his drink.  
  
Amber joined Richie in the kitchen, while Joe and Duncan talked.  
  
"Mac, I've been doing some serious reading," Joe said.  
  
"Wonderful, if you're lucky, you'll fine a nice young lady to do it with," Duncan said.  
  
"Not that! You know that book the After House I've been reading?" Joe asked.  
  
"Yeah, that's the one where everybody goes on the cruise, the captain's axe murdered, the ship sails out for 30 days and comes back with a canvas thrown over a lifeboat on the back, everybody dies. So?" Duncan asked.  
  
"So, do you know the author of that book?" Joe asked.  
  
"I'm going to take a wild guess, then I want you to leave me alone," Duncan sighed, "Mary Robert Rinehart."  
  
"How did you know?"  
  
"You're not the only one who enjoys an early 20th Century cold bloody murder, Amber told me all about the books, so what?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, I did some reading in another book of hers, The Haunted Lady, and you know how Amber's been getting sick lately?" Joe asked.  
  
"Yes, Joe," Duncan said.  
  
"I don't think it's as much Bylenia as Richie described, as it is arsenic," Joe said.  
  
"Arsenic?" Duncan turned his head.  
  
"Yeah, you see, in the book, there's this old lady who says someone's trying to murder her, but everyone says she's going senile, so no one believes her. She says that rats and bats have gotten into her house with no way possible unless someone let them in, then she said she found arsenic in the sugar for her breakfast. So I got curious and did some looking, it says that some symptoms of arsenic poisoning are nausea, headaches, fatigue, and there's an surefire way to tell if someone's been poisoned with it. Unmistakable white lines in the fingernails," Joe said.  
  
"Joe, put down the book and go watching something relaxing, I hear the WCW Smackdown starts in an hour," Duncan said.  
  
"Just think, it all makes sense, she's been throwing up, and she says she's tired all the time," Joe pointed out.  
  
"Joe, are you assuming that someone's poisoned Amber?" Duncan asked.  
  
"How can it not cross your mind?" Joe asked.  
  
"Joe, this is crazy, there's arsenic in water, there's arsenic in apple seeds, there's arsenic in beer, if she is poisoned and I doubt it, it could've come from anywhere," Duncan said.  
  
"Well, just take it into consideration," Joe told him.  
  
"That's not a bad idea," Methos walked in.  
  
"How long have you been listening?" Duncan asked.  
  
"7 years."  
  
"Not to me, to this," Duncan replied.  
  
"Oh...long enough to know it's nothing to sneeze at," Methos said.  
  
"Think about it, Mario's got hundreds of henchmen, who are mortals, at anytime, they could slip in here and poison her," Joe told him, "think about it, she's been so sick, what if they already have?"  
  
"That's not a bad question, Mac," Methos said.  
  
"Just think about it, it's possible she's poisoned with arsenic," Joe added.  
  
"Will you 2 shut up? This isn't the Living Dead, there's nothing to consider, there's nothing to sneeze at, there's no point in this whole thing!" Duncan said.  
  
End of 12, 13's up next… 


	12. Pass the Sugar and Arsenic Pt II

Pass the Sugar and Arsenic Pt II  
  
In the kitchen, Richie had made a large ham and potato chip sandwich, and sliced it down the middle with a machete sized knife, and handed half to Amber.  
  
"That was some night last night," Amber said.  
  
"Yeah, a whole night of blood and gore and brains, I don't know about you, but I'm never eating another hamburger again!" Richie sarcastically laughed.  
  
"You didn't like it?" Amber asked.  
  
"Those movies make me nauseous," Richie said.  
  
"They make me hungry," Amber replied.  
  
"You------that's no surprise, you were always disgusting," Richie said.  
  
Richie couldn't help but notice the way Amber bit at and chewed her food, like an animal, almost like the zombies in Night of the Living Dead when they started eating the people. Richie turned a light shade of green, dropped his sandwich and went to the next room to go toss his cookies.  
  
Duncan headed into the kitchen, looking for Richie, but he couldn't find him.  
  
"Have you seen Richie?" Duncan asked Amber.  
  
Amber pointed towards the back of the kitchen, two rooms over was a bathroom, Duncan was ready to knock on the door when he heard unpleasant belching, then he heard the sink faucet at full blast, then Richie came out with water dripping down his mouth.  
  
"You allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm fine, but the next time I do you a favor and watch her, I am NOT watching a zombie movie with her, I see one of those, I can't touch a hamburger for a week, and everything else...you get the picture," Richie said.  
  
"Of course, listen, I need to talk to you..."  
  
Before Duncan said anything else, he realized Amber was looking at them, smiling.  
  
"In private," he finished.  
  
So, he closed the door and spoke with Richie in the storage room.  
  
"What's up?" Richie asked.  
  
"Did you know about Amber and that's why you didn't want to take her swimming?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, I swear, I had no idea, otherwise I would've said something," Richie told him.  
  
"Then why didn't you want to take her? You saw how well she did last week," Duncan told him.  
  
"Yeah, that's the problem, she was doing so well, and she was already so far away from you when she got dragged to the bottom. I just panicked," Richie exhaled.  
  
"About what?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I was afraid of taking her out there, I remember how much trouble you had bringing her up, I was afraid if she drowned again, I wouldn't be able to get her out in time," Richie said.  
  
"Richie, I know Amber, that wasn't an accident, someone pulled her down there, and it's obviously someone who works for Mario, I couldn't tell anything was wrong until she started splashing down below. You heard what Amber said, they try once and fail, they're going to overlook it, they try and fail again, then it's going to be trouble," Duncan said.  
  
"So what?" Richie asked.  
  
"I did some thinking, last week when we were tracking down 2 of Mario's thugs, I remember that they took off in a blind panic when Amber came up the road, but they were already scared to death before they even saw her. I think it was the noise from the car and the shooting that disturbed them," Duncan said.  
  
"I'm not getting this," Richie said.  
  
"Apparently, they strike around here when we're not aware of that, and I think that's the only time there's any real peace and quiet around here," Duncan told him.  
  
"So if we could bring in a sudden uproar of noise in this house..." Richie started.  
  
"Exactly," Duncan grinned, "Mario's henchmen won't be able to pull anymore stunts around the house on us, and that's the most of our problems at the moment. Apparently Mario loves the idea of being protected by hundreds of mortal imbeciles."  
  
"Wonderful, I'll go discuss this with Amber," Richie said.  
  
Duncan grinned, "Not so fast," he said, as he snatched Richie's collar, "I don't want you to tell Amber about scaring off Mario's work. All I want you to do is convince her to make a little more noise around here, and find a convincing way of doing it, you're a horrible liar, so try to come up with something good."  
  
"Okay, no problem," Richie replied.  
  
Richie went into the hallway where he found Amber heading up the stairs.  
  
"Amber, what're you doing?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'm taking this suit upstairs to try it on, no thanks to 'natural', I've put on 10 pounds, meaning the only clothes I have that fit me are in the wash with hot water and salt to get the blood out," Amber replied.  
  
"I---I wanted to talk to you, you----it seems to me you're holding back during your stay here, not like you'd normally live in a place," Richie said.  
  
"Richie, I said I'd live with you, I didn't say I'd liiiive with you," Amber said, moving her hands up and down to get the point across.  
  
"No no no!" Richie exclaimed, "not that way, I mean---it-----it's been too quiet around here."  
  
"What?" Amber asked, obviously confused.  
  
"Amber, when I knew you in New Jersey, you were the loudest, most obnoxious kid in town, I like that, especially around here, between you and me, I'm not too fond of Joe myself, but I don't know how to get to him," Richie said.  
  
"Really?" Amber asked.  
  
"Really, you need to-------you need to get more like your old self, stomp around the place, make some noise, that kind of stuff," Richie said.  
  
"Are you sure?" Amber asked.  
  
"Of course," Richie replied.  
  
"I don't think so, I've got some CDs in my bag but....it's all heavy metal and 80s stuff, Kiss, Dead or Alive, Reflex, Tears for Fears, Thompson Twins, REM, Twisted Sister, Queen, you'd never get any rest around here," Amber told him.  
  
"Don't worry, more noise, the better," Richie told her.  
  
"Are you sure?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yes," Richie said.  
  
"Okay, but remember, you asked for it," Amber said.  
  
Richie gritted his teeth until Amber went upstairs, then he said it, "damn."  
  
End of 13, 14's coming soon… 


	13. Pass the Sugar and Arsenic Pt III

Pass the Sugar and Arsenic Pt III  
  
Richie wasn't too hot on this idea now, Amber was real loud when she wanted to be, and being a fan of Queen and Twisted Sister didn't help much either.  
  
"Well, how'd it go?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Uh.....Mac....I've got to ask you something, have you ever heard of a band called Queen?" Richie asked.  
  
Richie had heard Amber's kind of music before, however, he wasn't sure Duncan was up for hearing a guy screaming at the top of his lungs before the opening ballad came in, Amber was a real pill when it came to making noise, and later on that afternoon, it only proved more so.  
  
"AMBER!"  
  
"WHAT?"  
  
"TURN THAT DOWN!" Richie yelled.  
  
"What?" Amber asked.  
  
"TURN THAT NOISE DOWN!"   
  
"SORRY, I CAN'T HEAR YOU, I'LL HAVE TO TURN THE MUSIC DOWN!"  
  
Richie gritted his teeth to keep from yelling at her.  
  
"What were you saying?" she asked.  
  
"Uhhhhhh......We're trying to move some things around in the hall, and we need your help."  
  
"What're you moving?" Amber asked.  
  
"Methos' bed," Richie told her.  
  
"Okay, I'm game, let's go," Amber said.  
  
It was then that it hit Richie, she'd been having such a good time today she'd completely forgotten about the tests, if it made her happy and got her to forget the thought of dying, he figured she could keep at it. Well, the hallway looked like a furniture store had had a head on collision, everything was everywhere, and nothing was where it should've been. Duncan and Methos were yelling at each other like their cars had been smashed together, Joe was trying to be the voice of reasoning, but their yelling muted him out.  
  
"What's going on here?" Amber asked.  
  
"WE'RE TRYING TO MOVE HIS DAMN BED!" Duncan said.  
  
"No problem," Amber said.  
  
She turned to Richie and asked him to hold her bag, somehow, she picked up the bed from underneath and rolled it into Duncan's room, coming to a complete stop where Duncan's bed was.  
  
"How'd you do that?" Methos asked.  
  
Duncan quickly cut him off and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.  
  
"Believe me, I've seen her do stuff far more unbelievable than that, you don't want to find out," Duncan said.  
  
It was no doubt the subject of Amber's driving had gotten out, that was the best-case scenario Duncan figured she could do. She did good enough to wreck a '63 cadillac, he wouldn't want to see what she could do with something like a truck, and he figured if Methos provoked it, Amber would show them what else she could do.  
  
"Anything else you want me to move?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yes, my dresser in the next room over, and do be careful not to drop it," Methos said.  
  
"How could I drop a dresser?" Amber asked.  
  
"I don't know, but I know you well enough to know it's possible," Methos replied.  
  
Amber went back around to Methos' room and came out carrying the dresser.  
  
"Allright Amber, I think you've carried it far enough, give it to me," Duncan said.  
  
"I can't, I've got my hands full," Amber replied.  
  
"Well then drop it," Duncan said.  
  
"Okay," Amber said.  
  
Amber dropped the dresser on Duncan's foot, he started screaming and hopping around.  
  
"You asked for it," Amber called.  
  
Amber took off running down the hallway, slid down the railing and ran out the front door.  
  
"What's gotten into her?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I think I know," Richie laughed.  
  
"What?"  
  
"She thought you'd start yelling at her and chase her," Richie said.  
  
"Why would she think that?" Methos asked.  
  
"Old habit of hers, whenever someone starts screaming at her, she takes off, I better find her before she gets into trouble," Duncan said.  
  
"Did I miss something? Has she ever done otherwise?" Methos asked.  
  
"No," Richie laughed.  
  
That night, Methos and Joe headed out for the night, somehow, Methos got his hands on 2 opera tickets and decided to take a guest, he picked Joe since Duncan would cause a scene with a fat bandage on his face. When he found Amber, she turned into a tomcat and scratched him up good. So it was the 3 of them for dinner that night, mashed potatoes, fried chicken and spinach. However, no one was doing much eating, there was a noticeable disturbance in the room.  
  
"Why's everyone being so quiet? I feel like I'm in the morgue," Amber said.  
  
Duncan looked up from his food, throughout the meal he pretty much just picked at everything without even touching it, he hadn't been paying too much attention to the silence, although it was hard not to notice it.  
  
"I don't know, it's funny, it seems like the first time since we all met, we've run out of things to say," Duncan replied.  
  
Amber turned to Richie, he looked at her with sharp eyes, she looked back down at the table to avoid confrontation.  
  
"I will say this much, for once it's nice not to be yelling at each other, or throwing things, or getting blown full of holes," Duncan said.  
  
It was when Duncan looked up again he noticed something strange about Amber, she seemed slow at eating tonight, it wasn't as much that that got his attention as the fact that the juice from the spinach kept dripping down her mouth.  
  
"Amber, what's wrong with you tonight? You keep drooling," Duncan said, reaching for a napkin.  
  
"I don't know, I don't recall doing it lately, I feel like I'm burning up," Amber replied.  
  
It was then that it grabbed Richie's attention, that, and something else, it sounded like she was belching, but the noise was coming from her stomach. There was only one other time Richie had seen this before, he put down his glass, got out of his chair, grabbed Amber and headed for the next room.  
  
"Mac, you might want to step into the next room," Richie said.  
  
Duncan could then hear vomiting sounds from the bathroom, it was then that he started thinking about what Joe and Methos said, it stuck in his head like a broken record.  
  
[You might want to take it into consideration, she could be poisoned with arsenic.]  
  
[It's nothing to sneeze at.]  
  
[Just think, it all makes sense, lately she's been throwing up and she says she's been tired a lot. For all we know, someone could've already poisoned her.]  
  
[That's not a bad question, Mac...That's not a bad question Mac...]  
  
The last part echoed in his head for a while, Duncan rushed into the bathroom and grabbed Amber's hands. Her nails were perfectly normal, no white lines anywhere, so he scratched the idea of arsenic poisoning quickly.  
  
"Amber, what happened to you?" Duncan asked.  
  
Amber cleared her throat, Duncan backed up...just incase....  
  
"I think it's a case of the stomach flu, I remember I was the exact once when I was 14," Richie said.  
  
"Oh boy," Duncan said.  
  
"You're telling me," Amber said.  
  
Then she turned around to the sink again and continued throwing up, later that night, Duncan was on the balcony on the second floor up, pacing back and forth. The grandfather clock at the wall read 11:45, then he heard a door open down below, he slipped down the banister and into the kitchen. He got there in time to see Richie come out carrying a few bedsheets.  
  
"Well, how's the patient?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Asleep finally, I put some warm water in the tub, now she's got a waterbed for the night," Richie said.  
  
"That's not a smart thing to do, Rich," he said.  
  
"Oh yes it is, the water level's so low, rubber woman couldn't slip below the surface," Richie said.  
  
"Oh boy, what a night, she's sleeping in the bathtub, and I'm stuck sharing a bed with Methos," Duncan laughed.  
  
"I thought you were exchanging rooms," Richie brought up.  
  
"We were, but we didn't get through moving everything around, so...But it's better than sleeping with Joe, with all due respect, when he snores he inhales everything like a vacuum cleaner," Duncan said.  
  
Well, come 12:15, Duncan came out of the bathroom dressed for bed.  
  
"I say," Methos smirked, "do you always sleep dressed like Rambo?"   
  
"Ha, ha, ha," Duncan dimly replied, "very funny, I have to sleep with you, I'm not taking any chances...How'd I get stuck with you anyway?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Just lucky, I guess," Methos laughed.  
  
"You're an old man, you don't go to bed wearing Vicks and bengay do you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What do I look like? Milton Berle? Go to bed," Methos kicked him.  
  
Come 3:00...Duncan was sitting up in bed, listening to Methos snore.  
  
"Methos,"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Methos, that noise."  
  
"What noise?" Methos got up, ready to jump someone.  
  
"That snoring you do."  
  
"I don't snore."  
  
"Yes you do, just like this... Snore Huff Snore Huff Snore Huff"  
  
Methos couldn't help but notice that Duncan's impression sounded more like a donkey.  
  
"MacLeod, you've always proved to be quite a jackass, and this only furthers that theory," Methos laughed.  
  
"Forget it," Duncan kicked off the sheets.  
  
"Where're you going?" Methos asked.  
  
"I'm going down to see Amber, I'd rather listen to her throw up all night than you snore."  
  
End of 14, 15's up next… 


	14. Stunts, Lies and Videotape Pt I

Stunts, Lies and Videotape Pt I  
  
So, Duncan headed down to the kitchen, he wasn't too fond of the stairs that led down the backway, then a thought entered his mind.  
  
"What the heck? Only go around once, might as well enjoy it."  
  
So, Duncan slid down on the banister, and fell on his behind.  
  
"Well, made it this far without an injury," Duncan said.  
  
He rested his hand on the table, which moved it, and dropped the vase onto his head, smashing into a million pieces.  
  
"Dandruff," he said.  
  
As Duncan headed into the bathroom, he stopped to think for a minute, at that time, in a small cloud of smoke, out poofed a miniature image of himself, dressed as a cavalier.  
  
"What do you want?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What do you think? You know what you're going in there for, and it ain't just to listen to her vomit," the devilish figure replied.  
  
"Is that so?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm half of you, I know what goes on in your mind."  
  
Out of another cloud poofed another image of Duncan, this one was dressed in a white suit.  
  
"Yes, the left half, the half that always brings in the twisted thoughts, if you lay one finger on that poor, defenseless child, you'll regret it for the rest of your life, and you know it!" he said to Duncan, waving his finger at him.  
  
"I know that," Duncan said.  
  
"Shut up," the cavalier replied, banging the other one on the head.  
  
"Allright you, get out, I want to be alone!" Duncan exclaimed.  
  
Amber drew back the shower curtain on her 'water bed'.  
  
"Sorry," she said, "what is it? Personal problems?"  
  
Duncan turned around to face her, he'd been so busy arguing with himself, he forgot she was in the room.  
  
"No Amber," he nervously laughed, "actually, i wanted to talk to you."  
  
"Talking's fine, it's when I get ready to belch you might want to leave," she said.  
  
"Some week," Duncan laughed, as he sat on the floor.  
  
"Some month," Amber replied, "I swear, this is the last time I go somewhere to meet some Scottish guy in a dress."  
  
"Kilt," Duncan corrected her.  
  
"What the hell are you doing?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan realized he'd turned away and put his hand up to his face in defense.  
  
"Oh nothing, I was just thinking of the last time I said that," Duncan said.  
  
"What happened?" Amber asked.  
  
"I got slapped."  
  
"Fresh."  
  
"That's what he thought, this guy's wife, wrote this book about me, he thought I was making advances towards her and we got into a fight," Duncan told her.  
  
"You got slapped just for saying kilt?" Amber asked.  
  
"Does sound very silly, doesn't it?" Duncan asked.  
  
"So, why'd you come down here?" Amber asked.  
  
"I couldn't stay with Methos, he snores like an rhino with a sinus attack," Duncan answered.  
  
"Well tomorrow providing my stomach stops flipping around, I'll help you move his things again," Amber said.  
  
Duncan bit his mouth to keep from talking, but he was having trouble maintaining a straight face.  
  
"What?" Amber asked.  
  
"Just do me a favor and don't try to lift his secretary," Duncan laughed.  
  
"Why? What's wrong with that desk?" Amber asked.  
  
"Have you seen the size of it? And everything on top's so loose it's bound to drop any time."  
  
"Yeah well don't worry, I promise to watch out for your feet tomorrow," Amber replied.  
  
"So how've things been going?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Wonderful, my last performance was at 12:30," Amber replied.  
  
"Sorry to hear that," Duncan said.  
  
"I'm not, no offense, Mac, you're a great warrior, but you fry a chicken like you could throw it at a brick wall and turn it to rubble," Amber told him.  
  
Duncan started laughing, but once he really got her message, he just looked at her with a stern face. By morning, Duncan got up at 5:30 due to a problem, there was someone on the grounds, but obviously not one of Mario's mortal henchmen. However, Duncan knew there was something up when he caught him outside of the garage, but when the man took off, Duncan knew there was more to it than met the eye. So he followed him, and tailed him for 22 straight miles until he finally caught him. However, that didn't go too well either, when he grabbed the guy by the jacket, he turned around and shot Duncan with a 32 caliber pistol, right in the hand. As Duncan got ready to yell some fresh French at the guy, something came over him and he passed out, when he woke up, the man was gone, he figured he'd best go back home.  
  
No sooner had Duncan stepped out and slammed the door on the truck, he knew something was different, there were tire tread marks heading back to the garage, but they weren't there when he left. And considering there was only one set, he assumed he knew what happened. He walked in the front door and found Amber in the living room, she had an unusually large bump on top of her forehead. It looked more like a red line than a bump, but never the less, it was a bump.  
  
"Amber, what happened to you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I got up to get out of the tub and I slipped and hit my head on the tub," Amber said.  
  
"What? That tub's made out of marble, I better take you to the doctor to make sure you're allright," he said.  
  
"Boy, as many trips as we make, those doctors are going to hate us," Amber said.  
  
"Yes they will, the insurance is paying for our visits," Duncan laughed.  
  
Duncan took Amber out, helped her into the passenger seat of the pickup and took off for the doctor's...  
  
"Well?" Duncan asked.  
  
"There appears to be no brain damage, although I must ask, how did she get that bump?" the doctor asked.  
  
"She....she.....Amber tell them what you told me."  
  
If Duncan tried explaining she fell getting out of the tub, the doctor might ask what she was doing in the tub. If he explained it was her bed for the night with her stomach, it probably wouldn't go over so well.  
  
"Well, I was getting out of the tub, when I slipped on the floor, fell down, and hit my head on the marble tub," Amber explained.  
  
"And what were you doing in the tub?" the doctor asked.  
  
"You get dirty like everyone else, you tell me," Amber said.  
  
"I see, and was your father there when you fell?" the doctor asked.  
  
"He's not my father...he's my uncle, and he was gone when I fell, I had already gotten out of the tub and dressed long before he got back," Amber said.  
  
"I see, now, who exactly do I send this bill to?" the doctor asked.  
  
Duncan took out the card of the insurance company and handed it to the doctor, he wasn't very pleased by that, especially considering it was a good insurance company. The doctor mumbled a bunch of profane stuff to himself as Duncan and Amber walked out of the office.  
  
"How'd you come up with that that quickly?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Years of practice, in Newark, it's the only way to survive," Amber told him.  
  
"Ahhhh."  
  
When they got back to the house, Amber ran in through the front door with Duncan close behind.  
  
"Where've you two been?" Methos asked.  
  
"At the doctor's, when I came home today, Amber had a rather large bump on her head," Duncan said.  
  
"Don't look at me, I saw nothing, I know nothing," Methos walked off.  
  
"I'll believe that," Duncan laughed.  
  
"Mac, can I see you in the back for a minute?" Joe called.  
  
He met him near the garage, figuring something was up.  
  
"What is it?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Shortly after you left today, I realized someone else left as well," Joe said.  
  
Joe pointed out with his cane, that one of the motorcycles had recently been taken out.  
  
"Richie?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I don't know, all I know is I got up when I heard this awful noise, by the time I get down here, he's already taken off, then, he comes back, leaving a large noticeable stain in the road, and disappears."  
  
"Did you see him when he came back?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, I was with Methos, we heard something, and when I came out, I almost got runned over, when I recover from the shock, Easy Rider's gone," Joe said.  
  
Duncan didn't know what to think, he couldn't figure it out, that night, Methos was in the kitchen downing a pot of tea when Amber came in.  
  
End of 14, 15's coming up soon… 


	15. Stunts, Lies, and Videotape Pt II

Stunts, Lies and Videotape Pt II  
  
"Something wrong?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah, Methos, I promised Richie I wouldn't tell Mac, but I've gotta tell someone!"  
  
"Well do I look like him?" Methos asked.  
  
"Of course not, for one thing, your hair's too short and your nose is too small," Amber replied.  
  
"Continue," Methos said, ignoring her previous answer.  
  
"I didn't get the bump on my head by slipping in the tub, shortly after Mac left today, Richie and I went out today. We came to a sharp turn and we got thrown off his bike, it wasn't Richie's fault, but if Mac heard, he'd kill him."  
  
"I see, and why were you out at 5:30 in the morning to go gallywagging around town on a motorcycle?" Methos asked.  
  
"Because, Mac's been trying to make sure I don't think about the day after tomorrow, and in doing so, he's been making sure I stay where he can find me, but I have to get out now and then. But if he found out..."  
  
"Don't worry, your secret's safe with me," Methos said.  
  
Amber walked out the kitchen, Methos, not even raising his eyes started a new conversation.  
  
"How much of it did you hear?" he asked.  
  
"Every word of it," Duncan stepped out of the shadows.  
  
"So you heard everything?" Methos asked.  
  
"Yep."  
  
"So you're going to kill Richie?" Methos asked.  
  
"Nope," Duncan replied.  
  
"What?" Methos asked.  
  
Duncan laughed.  
  
"I'm going to let him sweat this one out, and let him think he got away with it," Duncan said.  
  
"He left a scar going a quarter of the way down her forehead, what do you say to that?" Methos asked.  
  
"You heard her, it wasn't Richie's fault, the bike threw both of them off...Amber's trying to get her mind off of those test results, and I can't say I blame her. I suppose I have been keeping too well an eye on her, like a prison guard, although there is something I don't get," Duncan said.  
  
"Pray tell, what is that?" Methos asked.  
  
"The day we met, we busted out of a government experimental building on the top floor on a motorcycle, she was willing to go along with it because she had to get out of the building. But somewhere along there, I could've sworn she went stiff with fear, I didn't know she was into motorcycles so much," Duncan said.  
  
As Methos continued to read the paper, Duncan turned his face sideways and let out a 'hmmmmmmmmmmmm', the only time he went like that was when he was onto something.  
  
"What?" Methos asked.  
  
"I'm going out for the night, tell Richie not to wait up for me," Duncan said.  
  
"Richie I wouldn't worry about, it's that girl who comes around every corner," Methos said.  
  
"You've known her longer than I have, do you know anything that might help me in this case?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Nope, I've lived for over 5,000 years, but I don't know anymore about her than she's a loud pest, there's not enough money in the world to pay an exterminator to get rid of her," Methos said.  
  
"Yeah, well try telling that to Mario," Duncan slipped on his jacket.  
  
"And where might I ask are you going so dressed up?" Methos asked.  
  
"I'm going to do a little role playing tonight," Duncan smiled.  
  
"Again?" Methos asked.  
  
"Yes, tonight I'm doing Colombo, tomorrow, I'll probably be doing Doctor Mandel," Duncan said.  
  
"You saw that zombie movie too huh?" Methos asked.  
  
"Yes, I'm in for more than just bloodshed and bar fights, now I'll see you in the morning, I'm going to punch someone's lights out before the night's over you can be sure," Duncan smiled.  
  
With that, Duncan took off, and Joe came into the kitchen.  
  
"Where's he going?" Joe asked.  
  
"I reckon to kill someone," Methos said.  
  
"Oh...so, what'd you find out?" Joe asked.  
  
"That bump came from an accident, but not in the bathtub, Richie and Amber went out joyriding today on one of the motorcycles from the garage, the thing flipped and threw them off. Apparently she got hit harder than Richie did," Methos answered.  
  
Around 2 in the morning, Duncan came storming in the front with something in his hand, he strolled into the living room, put the tape in the VCR and put it on. The footage was dated in 1997, June 14th, going on 15th, it was a hot night in June, the only lights came from the city. The camera person's POV is on the rooftop of a building, several rowdy teenagers all dressed in black leather and chains were getting restless. Duncan could almost hear his heart stop when he saw the obvious leader of the mob, Amber. She was ruthless, stammering around like a drunk, yelling at the top of her lungs. A bunch of the kids were putting together a bunch of money for something, but over all the hollering, Duncan couldn't make out what they were saying.  
  
"Allright!" Amber walked up, "Is everybody ready?"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"Good! Let's get this show on the road!" she exclaimed.  
  
Duncan almost assumed from her tone of voice that she was drunk, which only worried him more when she hopped on a Harley and started it up. She started off in a circle, then she went over to the edge of the roof, jumped off it and landed on the roof of a building across the street, a good 20+ feet away. Everyone screamed and cheered observing her victory, however, their cheers soon turned to panic when they saw her fall off her bike, but it continued across the roof, sparks flying out at every turn. The motorcycle fell off the roof, sparking a fire in the streets below, everyone rushed over to see if Amber had made it out alive. Surprisingly enough, she got out of it with no more than a few bruises and scrapes, blood ran down her clothes and stained the chains around her waist, but she didn't seem to have a worry in the world.  
  
For a while, Duncan didn't know what to think, apparently she was a real troublemaker back in the day, and apparently she still was. 3 hours later, he had Methos come down to view the footage, although Methos didn't quite get Duncan's plan up front.  
  
"It's my guess that if she was able to pull a stunt like that before, she could again if she had to," Duncan said.  
  
"But we don't know that for sure," Methos replied.  
  
"But I have an idea to find out," Duncan said.  
  
"I hope you know what you're getting into, you don't even know if she's Immortal or not," Methos said.  
  
"No, there's not going to be any risk involved," Duncan said.  
  
"Well I have a stupid question, we always know when another Immortal's coming, it's like bat radar, don't you ever feel anything when she's present?" Methos asked.  
  
"Yes, something, but I don't know what, it's not like all the others, but that doesn't necessarily mean she isn't," Duncan said.  
  
"It doesn't mean she is either," Methos added.  
  
"Well what about you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Something, but I think it's just indigestion, you know how when someone you can't stand shows up, and they make your stomach turn and all."  
  
"Anyway," Duncan said, ignoring Methos' response, "here's what I think we need to do to find out if she can do that again."  
  
The next night, it was going on 11 when Amber headed down, she was familiar with all the motorcycle gangs in the area, she received word on a hot tip they were getting together for a night of hell and noise. When she got down there, it seemed they all had gotten together and gone over their plans, they all dressed in leather jackets, denim jeans and steel toed boots, it wasn't uncommon, but the way they acted, you could tell them apart from every other gang in England.  
  
When Amber got down there, she realized it would be hard figuring out who to argue with, they all wore helmets with the visors blacked out, so if the police came up, they wouldn't be able to tell right away who they were. Amber went up to one of them who apparently got out a lot, he was about 6 feet tall and 180 pounds in muscle.  
  
"So what'd you call me down here for?" Amber asked.  
  
"Ah, Jenzon, how nice of you to come," he said.  
  
"Like ya had any other choice," another said.  
  
"Yeah, so what's this whole exposure thing about?" Amber asked.  
  
"We know what you are, and we'll be more than happy to divulge it to everyone...unless you accept a dare."  
  
"What?" Amber asked, full of self confidence.  
  
She wasn't sure what they meant by 'know what you are', but she figured it must've had something to do with the Immortals, nothing else could be that private.  
  
"Up there," he pointed.  
  
Amber looked up, she could see where this was going.  
  
"You're going to have to jump your bike off the edge of the roof up there and over onto the roof of the INUENDA supply center across the street," he said.  
  
"You're connected with Trash, aren't you?" Amber asked.  
  
"That's right, she told us all about that infamous jump you made in June of 1997, dare to do it again?" he asked.  
  
"That's not a fair deal, man," Amber said.  
  
"Backing down huh?"  
  
"No, I'm saying it's not a fair deal because the last time I made a jump, it was across a 23 foot street, this street's only 16 feet, it wouldn't be fair to my old reputation," Amber said.  
  
"It'll hurt your reputation even more if you don't jump at all," the guy said.  
  
Amber looked back up at the distance she would be jumping, she wasn't scared of having this guy tell the whole country her secret, but never the less, she never backed down from a dare she'd been given...make the jump, steal the diamonds, jump the bridge, detonate the bomb, these were things that came by naturally to her, but she was at a loss this time.  
  
"Okay, I'll do it," Amber said.  
  
The gang started screaming and cheering.  
  
"I guess now's as good a time as any to see if I am Immortal," Amber mumbled to herself.  
  
One of the gang members took off his helmet and pulled out a video camera.  
  
"This is one for the records," he said.  
  
Amber got her bike up to the roof, looked down and swallowed her pride and her common sense. This jump wasn't something she really wanted to do, but another part of her was ready to live for the moment. She nervously hopped on and started it up, she circled around the roof a couple of times to build up speed, two of the gang members were waiting nearby. Amber took off and jumped, but she'd put too much speed into it this time, instead of landing near the front of the roof, her bike landed in the middle, she got thrown off of it and banged up as it continued across the roof.   
  
"Oh my God, Amber!"  
  
Duncan ripped off his helmet and ran over to her to see if she was allright, since she'd gotten thrown off, she wasn't moving, and that had him worried. He lifted her head and tore off her helmet, he was in such a panic, he couldn't even think straight when he checked for a pulse. Before he knew what happened, Amber shot up in Duncan's arms and immediately started crying. Apparently she hadn't counted on that outcome of the jump either, Duncan laid her down and removed her jacket to check for any injuries. Methos came over to see what had happened.  
  
"Is she allright?" Methos asked.  
  
"I think so, just shook up, but not hurt," Duncan replied.  
  
Amber started screaming over her crying and started hitting Duncan.  
  
"You moron! How could you do such a thing to me? I could've been killed making that jump and you know it!"  
  
That was all he could understand, after that she went hysterical, and nothing she said could be understood.  
  
"Amber, I'm sorry, I didn't know that that would happen, Amber, listen to me....oh God, Amber, you're right, I'm so sorry, I didn't want you to get hurt, Amber, I'm sorry."  
  
"What were you thinking? Were you trying to see if I'd get killed and come back?"  
  
"No Amber, you have to believe me, I didn't mean for this to happen, you're right, Amber, I wasn't thinking, I can only hope you can forgive me one day."  
  
Amber turned and looked at him to give him a piece of her mind.  
  
"Mac, how could you do this to me you moron?"  
  
After that, Amber continued screaming at him and started crying again, which she was accompanied by him.  
  
"Come on," Methos said, "I'll help you get her to the car."  
  
End of 15, 16's coming up soon… 


	16. The Results

The Results  
  
By the time they got back to the house, Amber had passed out from crying for so long, they got back and walked through the front door with Amber hanging over Methos' shoulder.  
  
"You want I should put her in bed?" Methos asked.  
  
"No, put her on the couch, let her get some rest for the night," Duncan said.  
  
"There's a linen closet in the next room, you might want to get out some sheets and make a nice little beddy by for the little lady," Methos smirked.  
  
Duncan was tired and didn't feel like tussling it around with Methos, so he got some covers out from the closet and covered her up, Methos signaled him to see him in the next room.  
  
"You know when she wakes up tomorrow and remembers what you did, she's going to try and kill you," Methos told him.  
  
"I don't care, I don't care if she downright hates me, I'm just glad she's alive," Duncan sighed.  
  
"Did you hear her Methos?"  
  
"Beg pardon?" Methos asked.  
  
"Yeah, she accused me of questioning the possibility of her Immortality," Duncan said.  
  
"And did you?" Methos asked.  
  
"No, that never crossed my mind, I just wanted to know if she could make the jump, damn it Methos, I don't get it, I eliminated any and every risk I could think of," Duncan said.  
  
"Maybe that's the problem, maybe you didn't consider everything that could've happened," Methos told him.  
  
"Obviously not......damn it Methos, I don't get it, what happened?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Remember what she said? About the last jump being 23 feet and this was only 16? On the tape, she jumped from the end of one roof to the front of another, this time, she used the same speed and force and it went halfway over the next roof," Methos explained.  
  
"You know, you're right, I should've just listened to her when she said she couldn't make the jump from there. I should've just let it go," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, but it'll be one for the records," Methos replied, taking out the tape, "you said this whole thing was to prove she could do it again, and she did."  
  
Methos decided to turn in, but Duncan was wired with tension, he still couldn't believe what happened. He went back in the living room to make sure Amber was okay, she was sleeping like dead to the world.  
  
"I'm really sorry Amber," Duncan whispered, "I really screwed it this time, I promise you I'll never try something like that again."  
  
As Duncan got up to head to his own room, he heard something.  
  
"Mac."  
  
Amber hardly got her voice above a whisper, but he heard it sharp and clear.  
  
"Amber, I'm sorry about what happened, if I had known that this would've happened.......There's no excuse for what I did tonight, and I should've known that with an 8 foot difference you'd overthrow the speed. I'm terribly sorry, Amber, I just hope that someday you'll be able to forgive me," Duncan said.  
  
"Allright," Amber said in her ever-so-cocky tone, "I forgive ya."  
  
"What?"   
  
Duncan turned his head around so fast his body almost didn't catch up, he couldn't believe his ears.  
  
"I said I forgive you, you may be Immortal, but you're still human, and you're still bound to make dumb mistakes here and there. But can I ask you something?" Amber asked.  
  
"Sure, what is it?" Duncan asked.  
  
"How in the world did you and Methos manage to fit in with everyone else in that gang without getting caught?" Amber asked.  
  
"You're not the only one with connections," Duncan smiled, "Richie told us about the Hell's Knights."  
  
"How'd you know about the jump?" Amber asked.  
  
"I remember you told me that you came over to England before, and I started thinking, what is this girl's obsession with motorcycles? So then I figured, if she pulled a stunt involving one, odds are someone caught it on camera," Duncan said.  
  
"So how'd you know to get in touch with Yallie?" Amber asked.  
  
"Who?" Duncan asked.  
  
"That's how Will Fredille pronounces Yale, but...Yallie's a friend of mine, a retired gang leader, he's one of the only people who would have that tape. The only people who ever saw it were the ones who were there that night, you have to remember, I was 14 at the time, so if the cops heard I was jumping a motorcycle from one roof to the next, I'd be in lockup faster than you could say 'dragging the ball and chain'."  
  
However, Amber's cool composure startled Duncan, he expected her to go into a blind panic when he brought up her interest in motorcycles.  
  
"You know, don't you?" he asked.  
  
"Know what?" Amber asked.  
  
"Come on, Amber, you know I wasn't born yesterday," Duncan replied.  
  
"You said yourself I'm the eavesdropper of the household, why're you surprised?" Amber asked.  
  
"Well, when I heard you tell Methos that you promised Richie you wouldn't tell me, I figured it was something you'd want to keep under the table," Duncan said.  
  
"There are some things I like to keep personal, my past isn't exactly error proof you know, I get chased by the cops, I fight with Richie, I go out racing. I got arrested, it's not like I never..."  
  
"Wait a minute, you got arrested?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, see----one time this neighbor of mine, he built a bomb that he was going to take to the police station and set it off," Amber started.  
  
"And you were his assistant," Duncan assumed.  
  
"No way, I was trying to knock some sense into him, unfortunately at the time I hit him, he had the fuse in his grasp and he set it off. The cops were right around the corner and they spotted us, first they grabbed Tony, and then I..."  
  
"Kept on running," Duncan replied.  
  
"As fast as I could, for a while, the cops and I were in a chase against each other, one of them said he was keeping up with me and the speedometer read 45 mph. But finally they decided to end the wild goose chase, they caught me, took me to the station, took my prints, mug shots, read me my rights, and locked me up for 2 months," Amber said.  
  
"What about Tony?" Duncan asked.  
  
"They killed him right up front, but they figured since I was the last person seen with him around the time, they figured I was his partner, so..."  
  
"2 months for that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I escaped from a 20-year sentence because I was a juvenile, they found no connection between me and the bombing, and after 2 months I finally got out on bail," Amber said.  
  
"You never told me that," Duncan said.  
  
"I didn't think you'd be interested in hearing it, you must've heard a million sob stories by now," Amber said.  
  
"One million, two hundred and sixty-five, but who's counting?"  
  
"Whatever, I'm going to bed, I'm exhausted," Amber hopped off the couch.  
  
Duncan didn't say anything because he was afraid he might say something about tomorrow, tomorrow the results would be in for their tests, the clock was ticking, and when the results came through, Amber could either hear good news or her time was limited. Duncan could only hope things turned out for the best.  
  
1:15 in the afternoon, Duncan came in through the front door when he saw Richie with a tray in his hands.  
  
"Richie, where're you going?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Upstairs," he replied.  
  
Duncan took the lid off the dish, there was a large cheeseburger with a pile of fries, pickles, onion rings, and a sandwich on the side.  
  
"With all that food?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm hungry!" Richie replied.  
  
"You just had lunch," Duncan said.  
  
"So what? You take 4-5 helpings," Richie said.  
  
"Allright, allright, I'm just asking, you don't have to bite my head off," Duncan said.  
  
"Please, I just ate, allright, Mac, you really want to know? I'll tell you, this is for Amber," Richie said.  
  
"Amber?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, she just got up a couple hours ago, she's been sleeping for most of the day, I figure, let her sleep," Richie said.  
  
"Yeah..." Duncan replied.  
  
Duncan lifted the lid and took another quick glance at the food, Amber must've been starving if she was going to eat all that. He figured it was probably the stress, today was the day, they were going to find out if she was infected or not.  
  
A few minutes later, Duncan went upstairs to see Amber, she had barely gotten out of bed to eat, Duncan tried hard not to laugh, she looked exhausted, but it looked like she slept like a rock.  
  
"What's going on?" he asked, trying to break the ice.  
  
"Nothing much, ya get the test results?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan looked down, she must've seen the papers sticking in his jacket.  
  
"Yes Amber," he said.  
  
"And?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan bit his words for a long time, finally......  
  
"Your test came back positive," Duncan finally said.  
  
"I knew it, I knew it, damn!" Amber said.  
  
"No wait, you didn't let me finish," Duncan said, "it came back positive that you're 100% negatively infected."  
  
Amber took a large swallow, Duncan thought for a minute she was choking on her food.  
  
"You're telling me that I don't have AIDS?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yes," Duncan smiled.  
  
"Allright! Thank God, I was scared to death I had it," Amber said.  
  
"I told you you had nothing to worry about," Duncan told her.  
  
"Yeah, but wait a minute, what about your results?" Amber asked.  
  
"Negative," Duncan smiled.  
  
"Duncan this is great!" Amber exclaimed.  
  
[Yes, and if it gets any greater than this, I think I'm going to go deaf,] Duncan thought.  
  
"This is great, you have no idea how long I've worried about this," Amber said.  
  
Half an hour later, Duncan came down the backstairs to the kitchen where Methos was.  
  
"I'm going to go on a limb and guess the results were negative," he said.  
  
"For once you got one right," Duncan said, "I tell you, I haven't seen Amber this happy since she made that jump in '97."  
  
At that time, they heard someone stomping down the stairs, it was Amber.  
  
[Yep, she's feeling better, she knows I hate that noise,] Duncan said.  
  
The stairs in the kitchen were made of a strange metal, like a mixture of steel and iron, so they really pounded when someone stomped on them.  
  
"Oh it's you, is it safe to assume that you pulled something that's probably going to get you killed?" Methos asked.  
  
"Only if Dawson can catch me, and providing I get a head start, I could be half-way to Romania by the time he finds me," Amber laughed.  
  
Duncan was glad to see Amber in a good mood, especially considering how bad a wreck she was last night. After a while, he asked her to meet him outside, there were a few things he wanted to get off his chest.  
  
"What's going on?" Amber asked.  
  
"Amber, I didn't get a chance to explain why I did what I did last night," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah well, I'm sure you had some reason I'll probably never understand," Amber said.  
  
"Well...Let me try to explain, when I saw that stunt you pulled on the tape, I didn't know what to think, for one thing, I was shocked that you even knew how to ride a motorcycle. Then on the other hand, I was shocked that you would do such a stupid thing. But after a while, I realized it wouldn't be so stupid, depending on the situation, and I started thinking, I wanted to know if you could do it again if you had to," Duncan told her.  
  
"Well, apparently I can, but I won't for a while," Amber replied.  
  
"I am truly sorry Amber, I was scared to death when I saw what happened," Duncan said.  
  
"For a while, I guess I must've blanked out of it because once I got thrown off the bike, everything went black, then the next thing I remembered was you shaking me, and checking for a pulse," Amber responded.  
  
Duncan decided to change the subject.  
  
"So how long you been riding those things?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Few years," Amber answered, hestitating, "after my parents died and I was on my own, I guess I just didn't care about anything anymore. I didn't care where I went, what I did, it seemed everyone I cared about got sucked out of my life."  
  
"That isn't true Amber," Duncan told her.  
  
"It sure as hell felt like it, like that, I didn't care what I said, what I did, I didn't care who I was with, it's like everything inside of me turned to stone, then I met you," Amber said.  
  
"Amber, you shouldn't feel like either one person cares about you or none of them. I care about you, Richie cares about you, even Methos although he won't say anything."  
  
Amber remained silent for a long time and looked down.  
  
"The important thing is there are other people in the world who'll care for you, but you can't lock up everything you have and everything you are to a careless life heading to hell, you have to think like the old times, back when it wasn't hell on earth for you," Duncan said.  
  
"I've tried, I have honestly, believe me, I've been a lot more of a bitch than I am now, it's just that I've been moving around so much the last few years, I'd like to stay in one place for a while," Amber said.  
  
"I get it," Duncan said, "and you're welcome to stay as long as you want."  
  
End of 16, 17's coming up soon. 


	17. Training Day

Training Day  
  
Chapter 17  
  
5:00 AM in the morning, Duncan could hear two people yelling down below, he decided to see what was going on. He slipped out the front door and could see Richie and Amber swinging metal pipes at each other. However, before butting in, he waited while Amber jumped up and hit Richie in the back as he pounced at her.  
  
"Richie, what do you think you're doing?" Duncan asked.  
  
Once Richie spit the grass out of his mouth and got back up, he decided to explain.  
  
"I figured it was time someone got down to training her," Richie said.  
  
"And you figured you were fit for the job?" Duncan smiled.  
  
"Well Methos isn't too fond of her, and you've had your hands full with everything else," Richie explained.  
  
"Everything else?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah, you know, Mario, his army of mortal darkness, trouble 5,000 feet under the sea, being blown to smithereens and all that such," Richie replied.  
  
By the time he got through explaining himself, Duncan was right next to him.  
  
"I see," Duncan laughed, "this way please."  
  
Duncan grabbed Richie by his shirt and dragged him back over to the house.  
  
"What do you think you're doing training her? We don't even know if she's Immortal yet," Duncan said.  
  
"Well we can't take a chance Mac, Mario could drop his entire army on us, any day now, and I don't know about you, but I want to be ready, and I think it's only fair if Amber has a fighting chance herself," Richie added.  
  
"Well, I suppose you're right, I do think Amber should be trained," Duncan said.  
  
"Allright," Richie said.  
  
"But I'll train her," Duncan responded.  
  
"What?" Richie asked.  
  
"Richie, I know you feel like you're her best hope for a trainer, but you have to remember, I've been around the block more times than you have and I still know a few things you don't yet," Duncan said.  
  
As they started quietly arguing over who was going to teach her, Amber walked up in between them.  
  
"As long as you two are trying to see......who'll be the last one standing, do you mind if we settle this in the house? I'm beat."  
  
"I say, how long have you 2 been at it?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I guess about 2 hours," Amber replied.  
  
"2 hours?!" Duncan almost screamed, "Richie, what kind of moron gets someone up to train at 3 in the morning?"  
  
"Mac, I..."  
  
"No, on second thought, I don't want to hear it, everybody just....get in the house, we'll discuss this later," Duncan said.  
  
Richie knew that tone of voice, when Mac talked like a smart aleck, it meant it was a warning, someone crosses the line and he's gonna explode, so he headed into the house.  
  
"And where's that leave us? What are we gonna do?" Amber asked.  
  
"We're going to wait 2 hours and try this again when the sun comes up," Duncan said.  
  
"How long were you listening to us anyway?" Amber asked.  
  
"I'll tell you, I was sleeping like a rock when you two started screaming like a foreign karate movie," Duncan said.  
  
Come 7:00, they were back out front again, Amber had gotten a head start of Duncan, he was the last one out.  
  
"Well, it looks like we're ready to begin," he said.  
  
"Ready," Amber smiled.  
  
Duncan looked up and almost fell over, Amber pulled a Kotestu Katana out of her jacket, Duncan was in shock, for a while, he didn't know what to think, after a couple of minutes, he finally got something back in his voice.  
  
"Where did you get that?" he asked.  
  
"You're not the only one who goes by the saying 'be prepared for anything and everything' you know," Amber said.  
  
Well, to Duncan it didn't matter, he'd ask her again later, he walked up to her and grabbed the sword by the handle.  
  
"We'll move onto this lesson later," Duncan said.  
  
Amber grabbed Duncan and flipped him onto the ground and set the tip of the blade just half an inch from his nose.  
  
"I say we learn it now," Amber told him.  
  
Duncan clashed his katana against the tip of hers, knocking it out of her hand, Duncan grabbed both the swords and stood up.  
  
"Look Amber, rule one is to listen to your master," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah and rule two is never listen to rule one," Amber replied.  
  
Amber grasped the swords while Duncan still had hold of them and flung him onto the ground again.  
  
"The kid learns fast," he whispered, half laughing at it.  
  
Duncan jumped off the ground and tackled Amber, however, she outsmarted him again by banging him on the head with the pipe.  
  
"Again with that huh?" Duncan asked, already half out of it.  
  
"This is ridiculous, I thought going up against you would be more of a challenge," Amber said.  
  
Duncan grabbed her by the collar to speak with her, but he passed out before he could get to the first syllable. A short while later, Duncan insisted they try again, but first he was going to try something new. First they tried aiming for each other with pipes, Duncan figured it would be safer if they didn't start off swinging things with sharp ends. This time he had more of an idea what to do, he swung at her, narrowly missing hitting her above the eye, she thrust hers at him, hitting him in the stomach. Duncan got a real lucky swing this time, Amber saw it coming at disappeared, it was then that Duncan realized had she been there, the hit could have and would have broken her neck.  
  
"Amber, Amber where'd you go?" he asked.  
  
"Down here."  
  
Duncan almost had to laugh at himself, Amber threw her pipe in the air and ducked under the house, this wasn't to hard because the foundation was 3-ft pipes spread out with enough room to crawl under.  
  
"What're you doing down there?" he asked.  
  
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Amber nervously smiled.  
  
"Amber, look I..."  
  
"Hi Mac."  
  
"Hi Richie," Duncan turned, "Amber, I don't..."  
  
"What are you doing hunched down like a dog?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'm digging for bones, I think I might just find a good one in your head, *bark bark*," Duncan told him.  
  
Duncan turned and started crawling under the house as he went into explanation.  
  
"Look Amber, I said I was going to..."  
  
However, he didn't get around to the whole explanation, Amber panicked, and threw him down as she ran out of there and down the back road to the woods.  
  
"Aren't you coming out of there?" Richie asked.  
  
"Not at the moment, I think this is the closest I'm getting to being in the doghouse today," Duncan smiled.  
  
Well, Duncan knew he screwed up today, first he almost killed Amber, then he scared her off.  
  
"Something wrong?" Joe asked.  
  
"Yeah, I almost killed Amber today," Duncan replied.  
  
"I'm sorry, what's the problem?" Joe asked.  
  
Duncan looked up at him, with arched eyebrows that looked like the arches would reach his hairline.  
  
"Joe..."  
  
Before Duncan could really say anything, the back door flew open and in came Methos and Amber.  
  
"Amber, are you allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"She's fine, and though I don't usually talk about people like animals, you may want to feed her, I think she's hungry," Methos said.  
  
"What makes you say that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"The fact that she bit my hand when I found her gives me a good idea," Methos said.  
  
"You bit him?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Hey, it was either his hand or his boot, and I didn't exactly feel like leather today...but one way or another, that's what I got," Amber told him.  
  
"Well, I'm leaving," Joe got up.  
  
"And what's wrong with you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Excuse me Mac, but I dont feel like having Jaws rip me from piece to piece today," Joe said.  
  
Well, Duncan didn't know where to begin so he just said the first thing that came out of his mouth.  
  
"You hungry?" he asked.  
  
"You kidding?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan turned around and bit the inside of his mouth.  
  
"I'm starving, I haven't eaten since last night at dinner," Amber replied.  
  
Duncan did some thinking and got an idea, he decided to head out and prepare everything for when he and Amber decided to go at it again, as he left the kitchen, Richie entered to find Amber munching away at her food like a zombie again.  
  
"Must you do that?" Richie asked.  
  
"I beg your pardon, do what?" Amber asked.  
  
"The way you eat, it's like watching the Living Dead, gross," Richie said.  
  
"Excuse me, but that's the way I eat, you're not exactly a perfect example of manners yourself you know," Amber said.  
  
"Oh yeah, how?" Richie asked.  
  
"Where to begin...For one thing, whenever you get ready to hit the sack, you always have to plop down on that noisy bed, with those old rickety springs. When you come in from the rain, you leave your boots on the porch, and leave enough of a trail of water on the floor to start a river. When you pass by some loudmouth guy in a semi, you always have to turn and flip them off. When you take a bath, you leave a ring around everything BUT the tub! You pick a fight anywhere you find someone when anyone's willing to knock your bridge out."  
  
That continued all the way up to Richie's room, he slammed the door on Amber, only to have her scream again.  
  
"And another thing!"  
  
She ripped the door open and walked in as if nothing had happened.  
  
"That's another thing I hate about you, whenever someone says something you don't like, the slam the door on them!" Amber said, "I'll see you later."  
  
"Where're you going?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'm going to talk to Duncan, there's something I've gotta ask him," Amber said.  
  
End of 17, 18's coming up soon. 


	18. Where's Amanda?

Where's Amanda?  
  
Chapter 18  
  
As Amber started down the stairs it hit her, she couldn't approach Duncan and flat out ask him, she decided to wait for a while, she headed back upstairs and slipped into Duncan's room.  
  
She reached into his dresser and pulled out several pictures, all of which he was accompanied by a woman. Most of them were in the 20s, Duncan was dressed like a simpleton, the woman was dressed like a psychic. Some were very recent, she looked like a spy, he looked like a fool, apparently not all that much had changed in the last 70+ years. Well, finally, Amber decided she couldn't take it anymore, she had to ask Duncan, she grabbed the bull by the horns and headed downstairs when she ran into Duncan.  
  
"Hey Amber, what's going on? I heard you yelling at Richie then everything went quiet," Duncan realized.  
  
"Yeah well...I gotta talk to ya, Mac...Look, I've been thinking about this for a while, and there's something I've just gotta know."  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What happened to......what happened......Duncan, there's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to say it...Whatever happened to Amanda?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan dropped his glass, smashing into thousands of pieces, he turned around and looked like he was in shock, Amber had expected this, but she just had to know.  
  
"How do you know Amanda?" Duncan asked.  
  
"A few days ago when you were gone, I went through some things in your room and found some pictures of you two...I know she wasn't killed, because of what happened a few months ago, but still....What happened to her?" Amber asked.  
  
Duncan knew his composure was falling apart, but he didn't want Amber to know...  
  
"Anyone who knows me and Amanda knows that it's always on and off," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, but this isn't just off, what happened to her? Where is she?" Amber asked.  
  
".....About a week before I came to meet you...She told me she was going to France for a few weeks, but...I think there was more to it than that," Duncan said.  
  
"I'm sorry to hear that," Amber replied.  
  
"Yeah well, it's not like it's the first time a woman's walked out of my life," Duncan told her.  
  
"I saw some pictures of you 2 that must've been about 70 years old, and the others seem very recent, what happened to all the pictures between then and now?" Amber asked.  
  
"Never took any, during that time, she ran from one town to the next with some fool-hearty gangster named Cory Raines," Duncan said.  
  
"Richie told me, he's the schmuk that blew you up isnt' he?" Amber asked.  
  
"Yeah, that's the one, I don't think I'll forget the last time I saw him, it was shortly after I blew him up. After a while, the police got him, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison, but he broke out, he disappeared after that. I haven't seen that son of a bitch since, and if I ever find him, I'll get him for the last time," Duncan said.  
  
"If it were me, I'd squeeze his neck until his spine popped," Amber replied.  
  
"Well, apparently that's the difference between you and me," Duncan said.  
  
"Well, there's one thing I like about you, you're poor in English," Amber responded.  
  
"I don't think I'll be seeing Amanda for a while, right before we left, we got into a real match, and she left steaming and she said she didn't plan on coming back for a while..."  
  
"And you haven't heard from her or anything?" Amber asked.  
  
"No, when Amanda gets mad, she stays mad for a long time," Duncan replied.  
  
"Sorry..."  
  
"Well, I wouldn't call it anything to get excited about, Amanda's over 1,000 years old, by now she has to have learned how to blow off some steam," Duncan said.  
  
Well, Amber walked out of the room and headed back upstairs when she ran into Richie.  
  
"What's wrong with you?" he asked.  
  
"I don't feel like training anymore today, my stomach feels like its got a rock in it and my eyes feel like they weight 200 pounds each," Amber said.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"I feel awful, I just got through talking to Duncan about Amanda, and I'm not in the mood for tussling matches anymore, I'm not gonna do it anymore," Amber said.  
  
Amber threw herself on the bed exhausted, Richie started thinking...  
  
"No!" Duncan said as he headed up the stairs.  
  
"How come?" Richie followed.  
  
"Why?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Why not? Richie replied.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why not?  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Mac, I have an even better question," Richie said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Why not?" Richie asked.  
  
Duncan sat down and ran his hand down his face, trying to think of a way to win this argument.  
  
"Richie, if you were still 16, I'd take you over my knee and spank you!" he said.  
  
"Well then I'm glad I made it past that age," Richie scoffed.  
  
"Yeah, you and me both," Duncan said, "Richie, this is completely ridiculous."  
  
"It is not, and if you'd just agree, I'd show you," Richie said.  
  
"No!" Duncan stood up, "I won't agree."  
  
"That's totally out of line!" Richie cried foul.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
At that point, Amber came in dizzily staggering around.  
  
"What's going on?" she demanded to know, "It's harder to get any sleep in here than in a German prison."  
  
"We're having a discussion," Duncan said.  
  
"No we're not," Richie stood up, "I brought it on as a discussion, he's turned the whole thing into an argument."  
  
"DUH!" Amber said, "I knew it was an argument, but what over?"  
  
"I don't remember," Duncan realized, "Richie, what were we aruging about?"  
  
"I forgot," Richie added.  
  
"Yeah well, whatever you two were tussling it around about, could you discuss it over dinner when your mouths are full?" Amber asked.  
  
"That's it!" Richie said.  
  
"What's it?" Amber asked.  
  
"Forget it!" Duncan said.  
  
"Forget what?" Amber asked.  
  
"Don't even ask her," Duncan said.  
  
"I figured you might need to get out of the house, so I figured I'd take you down to a place called the Midnight Moonlite," Richie blurted it out.  
  
"I've seen England, there's no moonlight for the midnight," Amber said.  
  
"So, what do you say, Mac?" Richie asked.  
  
Duncan was in a corner now, it was easier when he and Richie were just arguing, now he had a potential underaged witness in the room, so...  
  
"It's up to Amber, what she says goes," Duncan sighed.  
  
"Well?" Richie asked.  
  
Duncan was ready to dig his nails into Richie's back for rushing her decision, but he only got around to pinching him on the shoulder blade.  
  
"It's allright with me, let's go," Amber said.  
  
"Allright!" Richie exclaimed.  
  
Within a few minutes, Richie and Amber were half way out the door with Duncan still ordering them around.  
  
"Now remember Richie, don't go into a blind rage with the first moron you come across."  
  
"Yes..."  
  
"And remember not to pick a fight with the first deadhead who enters the place."  
  
"Yes..."  
  
"And don't get drunk out of your mind and do your impersonation of Jay Jay French," Duncan reminded him.  
  
"Yes..."  
  
He and Amber were already in the truck and pulling out as Duncan went out giving another round of orders.  
  
"And don't....WHOA!" Duncan jumped out of the way as they pulled out, "Don't run anybody over!"  
  
Duncan climbed back onto the porch, where Methos stood laughing to himself.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What's the matter with you? How long have you known Richie?" Methos asked.  
  
"Long enough to know he can't be trusted in a pickup truck, with a girl, driving, and heading down to a bar like the Midnight Moonlite."  
  
"The Midnight isn't a bar, it's a night club," Methos argued.  
  
"Same thing," Duncan replied.  
  
"Besides, he's known you for about six years, surely he has to have learned something from you," Methos added.  
  
"That's what worries me," Duncan said.  
  
"What?" Methos smiled, "I must have an ear infection, it sounded like Duncan MacLeod of the MacLeod clan just admitted to making a jackass of himself."  
  
"Allright Methos, you've had your fun, now shutup and get in here," Duncan called from inside the house.  
  
"At least these days he's got some common sense, I think it's nice, I mean, you know how Richie gets around women, isn't it romantic?" Methos joked.  
  
Duncan looked up and gave Methos a glare like he was going to bite his hand off.  
  
"No, it isn't!" Duncan exploded.  
  
(End of 18, 19's up next.) 


	19. It Isn't Romantic!

It Isn't Romantic  
  
Chapter 19  
  
Duncan exhaled as the clock rang the hour, he counted...  
  
"4...5...6...7...8...9..."  
  
"Something wrong?" Methos asked.  
  
"Yeah, Richie's late," Duncan said.  
  
"He has a curfew still?" Methos asked.  
  
"Na," Duncan replied, "I told him Amber had to get back here before 9, and if she's coming back there's no need for him to stay at the Midnight."  
  
"The what?" Joe asked.  
  
"The Midnight Moonlite, it's a night club, the last time I was here, there was this place called Midnight Madness. It was awful, everyone got drunk, gangs fought, people got killed, some got thrown through windows, the back room was a red light district. Thank God it's not that place."  
  
"It is," Joe replied.  
  
Duncan thought he was having a heart attack when he heard that.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, a couple of months ago, the cops got suspicious about all the violence, so they closed down the Midnight Madness and turned it into the Midnight Moonlite, to fool the police," Joe explained.  
  
"Oh God!"   
  
"Where're you going?" Methos asked.  
  
"I'm going to get those two back here before someone gets killed," Duncan answered.  
  
"Well, why not? Only go around once, might as well pull every stunt you can," Methos said.  
  
"Surely you're not going down there too," Joe said.  
  
"Why? You've got a problem with bars all of a sudden?" Methos asked.  
  
"Let's go," Joe sighed.  
  
By the time they got down to the Midnight Moonlite, they could already tell there was trouble.  
  
"How many morons can they get in this place?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Guessing by the number of cars here, I'm guessing at least 200," Methos said.  
  
They headed up to the entrance when a guy got thrown out the window and into the street.  
  
"You allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I just got thrown out of there by the rudest, most obnoxious person I've ever seen!" the man exclaimed.  
  
"Maybe you should complain to the manager," Joe laughed.  
  
"I AM the manager," he replied.  
  
Well with that, they decided they better find Richie and Amber and hurry, when they got in, they were surrounded by dozens of drunk teenagers. Methos looked around for Richie and/or Amber, which was hard considering he had to get around all the drunks, he spotted Amber by the bar with a glass to her lips.  
  
"Well there she is over there," he pointed.  
  
"What's she doing?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It looks to me like she's downing a margurita," Methos said.  
  
"Come on, and try not to get lost," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah right, like I can fit in with these-------things," Methos said, after observing a teenager with a skull earring in his pierced left ear.  
  
Duncan and Methos made their way through a pack of wild drunks until they got up to the bar.  
  
"Amber..."  
  
"Duncan, thank God it's you, I thought I was going to throw up, it's so horrible here, I can't wait to get out, and between you and me, I don't feel like exiting the same way the manager did," Amber said.  
  
"What's going on? Where's Richie?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Over there," Amber pointed.  
  
Duncan looked over and saw Richie at a table near the back room, he kept banging his fist on the table as a response to the loud music.  
  
"What happened?" Duncan asked, "I thought I told him."  
  
"I know, I know, you told him not to get drunk out of his mind and do his impersonation of Jay Jay French, well he didn't...This time he only got drunk out of his mind," Amber replied.  
  
"What are you doing over here?" Methos asked.  
  
"Believe me, one thing you don't want to be around is a drunk Immortal, they're even more dangerous than the regular ones," Amber said.  
  
"Why didn't you just call the bouncers?" Methos added.  
  
"I did, I yelled 'BOUNCER', then Richie bounced them," Amber replied.  
  
"This is crazy, I'm going to get him and we're getting the hell out of here," Duncan said.  
  
Duncan walked over to Richie where he found him downing another scotch, by the looks of the glasses, he'd had 6 times the legal limit.  
  
"Richie," he called.  
  
Richie listened, but didn't turn to face Duncan, he just belched and wiped his mouth on his sleeve.  
  
"Rich, this is ridiculous, I told you specifically not to get drunk, now, you're making a fool of yourself, you have Amber worried out of her mind, and you--------you smell like rubbish, come on, we're going home," Duncan pulled him out of his chair.  
  
"Hey what do you think you're doing?" Richie asked, "Let go of me, don't touch me!"  
  
That was all the proof Duncan needed, he WAS drunk out of his mind.  
  
"Rich, this is ridiculous and I don't want to argue about it, well...not here anyway," Duncan said.  
  
Duncan grabbed Richie by his jacket to pull him out, but Richie resisted.  
  
"Let go of me man!" Richie yelled.  
  
"Richie," Duncan said.  
  
"I said don't touch me, man!" Richie exclaimed.  
  
"Rich, I've had enough of this," Duncan said.  
  
Before Duncan could do anything or say anything else, Richie planted a punch right to Duncan's jaw, the punch knocked him over the chair and on the floor.  
  
"Mac, are you allright?" Amber came running up.  
  
"I'm not sure but I think he broke my jaw," Duncan sat up.  
  
Methos came up and grabbed Richie by his collar.  
  
"I say, that's quite enough of that."  
  
As Richie planned his next assualt, Methos grabbed him and flipped him on the floor with him on top of Richie.  
  
Duncan and Amber grabbed him as they headed out towards the car.  
  
"What's wrong?" Joe asked when they got back home.  
  
"He's dead drunk," Duncan said.  
  
"Don't worry, when he wakes up tomorrow, he'll have a nasty hangover, I'll be glad to make it even more miserable," Amber told him.  
  
"Yeah," Duncan laughed, "with you being the brains of it, I don't doubt that."  
  
Early the next morning, Richie was on top of his bed looking worse than usual, Amber came in looked somewhat relieved. She walked over to the stereo system, put in a CD and turned up the volume as she put on Queen's The Hitman, the music rang in his hears, giving him a nasty wakeup call...  
  
"Trouble in the east, trouble in the west, struggle with the beast, what a theif what a pest, come back mother, nuke that sucker, yeah, yeah, yeah!"  
  
Richie jumped up in bed looking around symotaniously to see where the noise was coming from.  
  
"Oh, it's you, Amber, what happened?" he asked.  
  
"You got drunk last night, remember? We went down to that Midnight Madness place and you got drunk out of your mind on 3 marguritas and 17 scotches. You threw everyone out the window, 6 customers, the manager, the bouncers..."  
  
"I did?" Richie dizzily asked.  
  
"You are drunk!" Amber exclaimed, "you punched Mac out and knocked his jaw loose, Methos had to slap some sense into you and you were dead drunk and asleep by the time we got back!"  
  
"I hit Mac?" Richie realized.  
  
"And that wasn't the last thing you did either, after we brought you back here, you threw up in my boots," Amber said.  
  
"Oh...sorry," Richie said.  
  
"That's allright, I'm just glad I wasn't wearing them when you did, and I'm also glad that they weren't that hard to burn," Amber replied.  
  
"I did so much drinking last night, I don't remember much of anything," Richie said.  
  
"Well, you'll be able to see what you did to Mac, his bottom jaw's blue and purple today," Amber said.  
  
"Oh boy, I really screwed it this time," Richie realized.  
  
"Don't tell me, tell Mac," Amber said.  
  
"I can't, I can't even face him today, he told me not to get drunk and I went and did that, what would he say if I entered the room?" Richie put his hands on his face and yawned.  
  
"Probably that you've got a lot of explaining to do for getting drunk in the first place."  
  
"Exactly my point, Amber, thank you," Richie lied back down.  
  
"No problem sweety," Duncan laughed.  
  
"MAC?!" Richie jumped up in bed again.  
  
"Would you like to explain now or would you rather wait until your hangover's gone?" Duncan asked.  
  
Richie's eyes rolled back in his head and he fell down on the bed asleep again.  
  
"The next time he wakes up, probably won't be for a few hours, but by then he should be able to stay awake," Amber said.  
  
"How are you doing today?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I'm fine, although I still feel like throwing up," Amber replied.  
  
"If you were drinking last night, I'm not surprised," Duncan said.  
  
"I wasn't drinking," Amber told him.  
  
"No? Methos and I saw you at the bar with a glass full of something," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, you haven't been to Midnight Madness, but it's horrible, I knew something would happen if I looked too suspicious so, I just waited by the bar and told some people I was waiting for my friend who got picked up by the police. I told them...he was caught drag racing with someone and they got him."  
  
"And the drink?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Sweet and sour scotch, I didn't drink it, I just looked like it so nobody would try anything, damn Mac, that place scared the hell out of me," Amber said.  
  
"Why did you two go down there in the first place?" Duncan asked.  
  
"That's what I'd like to know, when we first got there it didn't seem all that bad, but then there must've been 20 cars parked outside, all with 2-5 college students in them and...It just----I haven't seen a riot like that in a long time, and I've seen plenty," Amber said.  
  
"Well, that surprises me," Duncan said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Well the fact that you didn't try to fight any of the drunks," Duncan replied.  
  
"Yeah well, maybe I didn't feel like punching someone out, I don't always feel like fighting you know," Amber told him.  
  
"I know, I know..."  
  
Duncan turned to speak with Amber, but saw that she seemed to be 'out of it', she was looking around at the house.  
  
"Something wrong?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Just thinking...the more I see this place...'more it reminds me of a hospital...'like the ones from years ago, before they used anesthetics, didn't have that much knowledge how to cure people, blood all over the place..."  
  
"I'll take it you don't go down on routine to cheer up the patients," Duncan laughed.  
  
However, he could tell Amber wasn't amused.  
  
"Sorry, just trying to lighten the mood around here," he said.  
  
Amber didn't reply, she just remained quiet.  
  
"Anyway," Duncan broke the silence, "what've you got planned today?"   
  
"Well, I figured I run a few miles and see if I could try to..."  
  
"Wait a minute, just now?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, I plan on leaving in a few minutes," Amber said.  
  
"What? Aren't you going to stop to eat?"  
  
"Are you kidding? After what Richie did last night, no thank you."  
  
Come 11:00, Richie came down the stairs, holding onto the banister so he wouldn't fall, he still seemed off balance, Duncan could tell because he tried walking over to him with one foot on the floor and the other still on the stair.  
  
"How are you today?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Awful, I can't see straight, everything I see's in darker shades of color, it feels like my whole body's off balance, and I still wanna puke," Richie said.  
  
"From what Joe says, that's exactly how it is day after you get the flu," Duncan said.  
  
"So how bad was it last night?" Richie asked.  
  
"Well, let's just say after I put you in bed, I kept the lights in my room on and slept in my army boots," Duncan said.  
  
"So where's Amber?" Richie looked around.  
  
"Oh, well, she was afraid you were turning into George Romero from Day of the Dead so she took off," Duncan laughed.  
  
"Oh man, I guess I really messed up last night," Richie said.  
  
"Yeah, you messed up the floors that's for sure," Duncan added.  
  
Richie looked at Duncan, he seemed to be somewhere else today.  
  
"Something wrong?" Richie asked.  
  
"No, it's just that I was thinking," Duncan said.  
  
"What about?" Richie asked.  
  
"I think one of the reasons Amber gets into so much trouble is because no one listens when she talks," Duncan said.  
  
"What're you talking about? We listen to her, not like we have a choice, though," Richie replied.  
  
"I don't mean like that, I mean hear someone and brush it off, a couple of weeks ago, she told me something, but I didn't pay any attention to it because I was trying to find out whether or not she could be Immortal," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, but there's always a way to tell who will become Immortal, it's like a 6th sense, don't you get anything when you're around her?" Richie asked.  
  
"No, well, yes, but not in the same sense, but that doesn't mean she isn't, you?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Hardly, the only thing I get when she enters the room is indigestion and put downs," Richie said, "anyway, what'd she say?"  
  
"Well, we were reconstructing her fight with the Watchers, I asked her if anything happened after she killed them, she couldn't remember. At the time, I wasn't sure if she even knew what a Quickening was, so I tried explaining it, hoping it was spark something in her memory," Duncan said.  
  
"Did it?" Richie asked.  
  
"No, but she said she'd seen it before," Duncan said.  
  
"Did she say when or even where?" Richie asked.  
  
"No, but that leaves the question of..."  
  
"Who did she see fighting and what business did she have with them?" Richie asked.  
  
"Exactly," Duncan said, "and..."  
  
"What business did she have that day during the fight in the first place..."  
  
"Right, however, at the time, I was too busy thinking about the outcome of her fight, I didn't give it too much thought...  
  
"Well, first thing we've gotta do is find her, did she say where she'd go?" Richie asked.  
  
Down in the woods, someone could be heard screaming and being strangled, then a hit. Amber's more of less lifeless body lay inches away from downhill to the river, with no one around for miles, and no one to help.  
  
End of 19, 20's coming up soon. 


	20. We'll Have A Good Time then

We'll Have A Good Time then  
  
Chapter 21  
  
The rain had already kicked in, pouring down hard enough to start a river, Duncan parked the car a few yards away from the train station.  
  
"Why do you think Amber came down here?" Richie asked.  
  
"It's the only place I can figure she'd come," Duncan said.  
  
"And for what purpose did she take your sword for?" Richie asked.  
  
"Well that part I haven't quite figured out yet," Duncan replied.  
  
"So you think she skipped town on us?" Richie asked.  
  
"I didn't say that," Duncan said.  
  
"So you think she's sticking around until further notice?" Richie asked.  
  
"I didn't say that, either," Duncan replied.  
  
"So what are you saying?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'm saying we better watch our backs," Duncan said.  
  
"I've got a better idea," Richie said.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"You watch your back and I'll just focus on watching my own a..."  
  
Before Richie could finish the sentence, shots rang out, pinning their hats to the side of a building.  
  
"What was that?" Richie asked.  
  
"You think we're sticking around to find out? Come on!" Duncan said.  
  
They tore out of there and slipped halfway around the station when they slipped in the rain. Shots rang out again, but they missed this time, Richie and Duncan looked up in shock as they saw Amber and Amanda on the roof of the station, both holding 32 cabliers in their hands.  
  
"Amanda?" Duncan gasped.  
  
"Amber, get the hell down here right now!" Richie said.  
  
"No problem," Amber replied.  
  
Amber kicked down a suitcase and jumped off the roof and landed next to the pillar of the building, she was accompanied by Amanda.  
  
"MacLeod, long time no see," Amanda said.  
  
"Really? I thought you'd say not long enough," Duncan replied.  
  
"Stop giving me that damn crapstreet and give me a kiss," Amanda said.  
  
"These two were made for each other if you ask me," Richie whisperd to Amber.  
  
"Yeah, they both have the power to make people sick, no wonder you sleep with a barf bag," Amber replied.  
  
"This is teriffic, how'd you know to come here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Well, I wasn't going to, but then I got a wire from over here, telling me I should come to England. When I asked why, this kid explained it was urgent, so then I asked what business she had with me, she said she knew an old partner of mine. I said who, and she asked me to identify something that belonged to the partner to see if I remembered," Amanda said.  
  
"Mac's katana," Richie realized.  
  
"Exactly," Amanda smiled.  
  
"I figured it would work, considering the kind of men she's dated," Amber said.  
  
"Wait, Amber, I don't get it, why'd you bring Amanda over here?" Duncan asked.  
  
"What?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Not that I didn't want you, but...Amber, I don't get it, what made you think to do this?" Duncan asked.  
  
"I just wanted you two to get back together while you had the chance," Amber replied.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Call it karma if you will, but I don't want you going through what I've gone through, I had a boyfriend when I was 13, named Kenny, he died. Had a boyfriend at 14, Shawn, he died. Had a boyfriend at 15, Tony, he died. Had a boyfriend 4 months ago, Jason."  
  
"He died?" Duncan asked.  
  
"No, he's just in the WPP."  
  
"The Witness Protection Program?" Duncan asked.  
  
"That's it," Amber said.  
  
"Wait, who's she?" Amanda asked.  
  
"That's a long story that still needs explanation, we better get back to the house before Mario comes up," Duncan said.  
  
"Who's Mario?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Long story," Richie said.  
  
"How'd you get back?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Long story as well," Amber replied.  
  
"So where do you guys live these days?" Amanda asked.  
  
"A real white elephant of a Victorian," Amber said.  
  
"Do you have any guests?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Yeah, Amber, Richie, Joe, Methos, you," Duncan said.  
  
End of 21, 22's coming up soon. 


	21. Mixed Blessings

Mixed Blessings  
  
Chapter 22  
  
"I don't believe it," Amanda said.  
  
"Well, I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so," Duncan smiled.  
  
"This is amazing, she's pulled all this?" Amanda asked.  
  
"And then some, I could prove it if I could find my gun," Amber said.  
  
"What gun?" Amanda asked.  
  
"My Cobray M 9/11, I haven't seen it in about a week," Amber said.  
  
"That's strange, cuz I can't find my gun either," Richie said.  
  
"You carry a Cobray too?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Don't be ridiculous, he carries an intertec 22 long rifle, or at least he did," Amber said, "I don't get it, what could've happened?"  
  
Duncan laughed, "well, with you two at each other's throats, I figured it would be best if there was a little 'gun control' around here, so..."  
  
Duncan pulled the guns out of his closet, Amber checked to make sure he didn't remove the ammo.  
  
"Hey, what happened to the bullets?"  
  
"You breathe hard on that thing and it's bound to go off you know," Duncan said.  
  
"An Immortal turned to Swiss cheese, next time that happens, let me know," Amber said.  
  
"Well, I guess I better unpack," Amanda smiled.  
  
"And I'll give you a hand," Duncan grinned.  
  
"Again, I feel like throwing up," Richie said.  
  
"Yeah, let's get something to eat," Amber replied.  
  
  
  
Rich and Amber left, leaving the two lovebirds in private, Amanda noticed Duncan had a blind look on his face, like his mind left him.  
  
"Something wrong?" she asked.  
  
"No," Duncan came back to reality, "it's just that for once, everything seems to be going right for a change."  
  
"What all have you put up with since I left?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Strange Immortals, an entire army of mortal morons, exploding cars, new diseases, hidden enemies, getting blown full of holes, you wouldn't imagine," Duncan said.  
  
"Oh really? Try maintaining a low profile in France for a 3 month stay, while there are terrorist threats, international spies, hooded murderers running around, police officers getting bumped off like a comical whodunnit, bombings right outside abortion clinics, some crazy cat burglar jumping around, and an anthrax scare," Amanda said.  
  
"Oh yeah? Well there's something else I forgot to tell you about," Duncan said.  
  
"What?" Amanda smiled.  
  
"Let's get something to eat, then I'll tell you," he said.  
  
At that time, Richie and Amber were halfway out of the kitchen when Methos walked in.  
  
"I say, where are you two going?" Methos asked.  
  
"We're going to see if we can find anything at the back road near the river, maybe that moron left something behind," Richie said.  
  
"He's not a moron, Richie, he knew what he was doing," Methos said, "he knew where to strike so it wouldn't kill her, but he also knew where to do that as well."  
  
"You're right, he's just an idiot," Richie said.  
  
"Where's Richie and Amber?" Duncan asked, coming down the stairs.  
  
"You just missed them, they're heading back to the river," Methos told him.  
  
Richie pulled his motorcycle out of the garage and checked to make sure it was still in a good condition to run.  
  
"Allright Amber, what's going on? You runaway, bite the world's oldest Immortal, steal Duncan's sword, shoot at us, yet I think there might be something up," Richie said.  
  
"There is, which is why we're heading to the Domestic Protection Supply store," Amber replied.  
  
"Domestic Protection? Where the hell's that?" Richie asked.  
  
"Just follow me and I'll show you," Amber said.  
  
Before Richie knew what happened, Amber sped out of there on a Harley, so Richie started up his motorcycle and took off after her.  
  
"No way," Amanda said.  
  
"Yes," Duncan replied.  
  
"You're telling me that that little brat tried to take your head off with one lucky swing of a pipe?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Well she didn't try to, but there's no doubt in my mind she could've," Duncan said.  
  
All Amanda could do was crack a laugh at that one.  
  
"I'm telling you Amanda, she might be only sixteen, but I don't know where she learned to do stuff like that, but I'd like to find out," Duncan replied.  
  
"But what was it that you flipped out about when you started training?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Did you ever see a Kotestu Katana?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Mmmmmmm yeah, down at the-----Domestic Protection Supply store, we passed by that place over here," Amanada said.  
  
"Yeah, 7 o clock yesterday, she pulled that out of her jacket, and wouldn't tell me where she got it, the next thing I knew, she threw me on the ground, and the blade was half an inch from my nose," Duncan said.  
  
"Maybe she learned from Richie," Amanda replied.  
  
"Please, she outdid Richie that same day," Duncan said.  
  
Meanwhile, down at the Domestic Protection Supply store, Amber was showing Richie around, he couldn't believe his eyes, there were a ton of Japanese weapons down there. Amber dug through a barrel and pulled out an interesting dagger.  
  
"This one's called DA506 Merlin's Dagger, they sell for about 58 pounds," Amber said.  
  
"Whoa!"  
  
"Yep, this baby can give ya a real nose job!" Amber said.  
  
"Looks good," Richie said.  
  
"Yep, that's good for a narrow job, but for a real wide job, you need something like the DA501 Odin Viking Dagger," Amber replied.  
  
"Looks better."  
  
"Yep, stainless steel, no blood stains, for long. This one sells for 61 pounds," Amber said.  
  
"You should get a job down here, you know how to identify everything," Richie told her.  
  
"Yep, let's get out of here, there's something I want to show you," Amber replied.  
  
So, they left the supply store, and headed a ways down to the brook where no one could see them.  
  
"So what is it you wanted to show me?" Richie asked.  
  
Amber pulled out of her jacket, a SD142-GL Tachi Warrior katana.  
  
"You little thief, you stole it from the supply store," Richie laughed.  
  
"Not hardly, this thing can pierce your face in a splitsecond if you're not careful, it's Mario's sword," Amber told him.  
  
"What? What the hell are you doing with it?" Richie asked.  
  
"Mario's not good with a sword, he doesn't realize its use, he uses a Black Dragon katana just to exterminate the rats. I stole it from him some time ago, one less thing to worry about," Amber said.  
  
"He has several?" Richie asked.  
  
"Quite a collection, he must have every kind of katana, rapier and dagger you'd find in that Domestic Protection store, which is why I had you come with me down here," Amber said.  
  
"Why?" Richie asked.  
  
"They recently received another shipment of Japanese weapons, which included 5 of these, Mario's gonna try and get his hands on another one, because that's the sword he uses to behead Immortals, we have to make sure he doesn't, and neither do any of his lackies," Amber said.  
  
"Sure, but how're we gonna do that?" Richie asked.  
  
"Well, I have an idea...not exactly the smartest thing, but right now it's the only one I've got," she said.  
  
"What?" Richie asked.  
  
By 5 o' clock, Richie and Amber came in through the front door with a huge crate.  
  
"What in the world is that?" Duncan asked, coming down the stairs.  
  
"That," Amber said as they droppd it, "is a booby trap."  
  
"What for?" Duncan laughed.  
  
"For boobs," Amber finished.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"It's a long story, we'll explain later," Richie said.  
  
"Wait a minute, how'd you manage to get all these?" Duncan asked.  
  
"They look expensive," Amanda said.  
  
"They are," Amber replied.  
  
"We went down to the Domestic Protection store because Amber had something to explain."  
  
"These are the choice weapon of Mario when he beheads someone, and since I stole his, he's gonna be after another one, these were the only ones that you could find in England, so Richie and I got them, as well as some other supplies so we wouldn't come on suspicious," Amber said.  
  
"How did you pay for all that?" Duncan asked.  
  
"We didn't have to," Amber replied.  
  
"We got down there, and told the manager we were interested in buying them, he said he had planned on paying for them for himself, when Amber said she intended to buy them, he challenged her to a bet," Richie explained.  
  
"He bet me 20,000 pounds that I couldn't defeat him in a fight, and if I did, he'd give me the swords, plus extra," Amber said.  
  
"And before you could say 'what was that', Amber grabbed this guy from behind, flipped him and knocked all senses out of him," Richie explained.  
  
That night, a storm had come up out of nowhere, Amber had grown tired and dozed off upstairs, down in the hallway, Richie and Duncan were talking.  
  
"Mac, I agree once Mario's dead, she has to stay with someone, but why does she have to stay with us?" Richie asked.  
  
"She doesn't know anyone else who's willing to take her in," Duncan said.  
  
"Right, but Mac..."  
  
"Richie, remember when we first met?"  
  
"Yeah, so?"  
  
"So, where do you think you would be today if I had just let you go?"  
  
"Mac, that's different, she's a girl..."  
  
"That never seemed to stop you before."  
  
"Look Mac, if you think what I think you're thinking, you're wrong, I don't love Amber, I tell her things now and then, but it's strictly routine, knowing my luck, one of us will probably disappear someday and we'll never meet again. And I'm fine with that, I'm used to it by now, I've been dead for some time now and came back. Leaving people behind and then they left me, so if I don't see Amber again, it's no skin off my nose, do you understand?" Richie asked.  
  
"Rich..." Duncan said.  
  
Richie turned around and saw Amber at the foot of the staircase, apparently she'd heard everything he said.  
  
"So that's the way it is huh? Well Ryan, if you didn't want me around, all you had to do was say so!"  
  
Amber clenched her automatic and ran out the back door to the woods and down to the river, Duncan and Richie followed her, but they couldn't see her for a while. A storm had started up, with lightning shooting out everywhere, Duncan hoped she wouldn't get electrocuted in the storm. Just then, they heard Amber scream, then gunshots, she came running back up as if her life depended on it.  
  
"Amber, what's the matter!?" Duncan and Richie asked.  
  
"Look!" Amber pointed, on the edge of hysteria.  
  
Duncan and Richie looked off in a distance and saw a horrifying sight, it was slumped over, decayed, moaning and walking. It was the body of Duncan's late rival, Johnny K!  
  
End of 22, 23's coming soon. 


	22. Plague of the Dead

Plague of the Dead  
  
Chapter 23  
  
Duncan could feel his body go numb, Johnny K was back, but it was impossible, he was dead, he was decayed, and somehow he had his head again. Amber reloaded her gun and shot at him again, this time, she got him in the head, in some way, killing him.  
  
"Amber, what happened?" Richie asked.  
  
"I don't know, but those things, they're all dead, they're zombies, I went down to the river, and I saw them coming out of the ground next to it!"  
  
So that was what Mario had buried there, he must've dug up all of Duncan's old rivals and victims and put them there until he was ready to unleash his army of the dead onto them.  
  
"Come on Rich, we've gotta get back to the house, it's our only chance," Duncan said.  
  
Duncan and Richie grabbed Amber by the shoulders and got her back into the house, Duncan boarded the back door since it seemed that'd be where they came first.  
  
"MacLeod, what do you think you're doing?" Joe asked.  
  
"Boarding up this place, Mario's gone overboard, he's brought all the dead Immortals back to life, not life exactly, they're re-animated, and they're coming after us," Duncan said.  
  
"What? Zombies?" Joe asked.  
  
"That's right, where's Amanda?" Duncan asked.  
  
"MacLeod, what's going on? Amber and Richie are getting out guns and ammo, muttering about zombies," Amanda came in.  
  
"Yeah, they're right, somehow, Mario must've found out where everyone was buried, dug them up, and hid them next to the river until he was able to bring them back to life," Duncan explained.  
  
"What'll we do?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Well, there's only 2 things we can do, kill them, and get the hell out of here," Duncan said.  
  
"Yeah, but how?" Amanda asked.  
  
"There's plenty of cars in the garage," Joe said.  
  
"Forget the garage, they're probably already on the property, besides, those cars they could turn over with us still in them...I know, last week, I took a pickup truck downtown for something, but left it there in case Mario bugged it to blow up. It should still be there...that's it."  
  
"What's it, MacLeod? If you're thinking of going out there and leaving us here for who knows how long...you're crazy!" Joe said.  
  
"Joe, it's the only way, I don't exactly know how long I'll be gone, but there should be enough ammo to last until I can get back, the truck's big enough for all of us to get in, and should we come across the walking dead, we can get out in a hurry..."  
  
"Wait a minute, you're not thinking of going out there alone!" Joe said.  
  
"Joe, we have no choice, you want to survive or not? I'm going, I'll be back as soon as I can," Duncan told them.  
  
Duncan headed down to the alley to get the truck as fast as he could, however, as he reached the alley, he realized that the next street down had already been washed out in the rain, he slipped, banged his head on the pavement and got knocked out.  
  
Hours went by and nothing, everyone patiently waited, Joe sat in the living room waiting, Amanda was nearby worrying, Methos was loading up a shotgun incase the zombies got in. At that point the phone rang, Joe answered it.  
  
"Mac's not here, Mario," he said.  
  
"I KNOW THAT!" Duncan exclaimed, "IT'S ME JOE!"  
  
"MacLeod, where the hell have you been?" Joe asked.  
  
"The next street down from here's been washed out already, I got knocked out a while ago, what's going on there?" Duncan asked.  
  
Before Joe could respond, Richie ripped the phone out of his hand.  
  
"Mac, what's going on? When're you getting back here?" Richie asked.  
  
Duncan could tell by his voice that he was worried.  
  
"Richie, what's wrong? What happened?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Amber fell down the stairs earlier, it's not good," Richie explained.  
  
"Continue..."  
  
"She's having a hard time walking, I don't think she could run to save her life if she had to," Richie said.  
  
"Look, I'm on 32nd street, so I should be able to get back up there by 3 o' clock," Duncan said, "You got that?"  
  
"Yeah Mac, yeah," Richie said.  
  
"Now Richie, listen closely, round up every gun and source of fire you can, when I pull up, I want everyone to get out of the house and jump in the truck as fast as possible, and we're storming out of here, understand?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yeah Mac, but what about Amber?" Richie asked.  
  
"About 10 till, bring her down here, and I'm depending on you and Methos to get her into the truck, she might not be very mobile now, but we're going to need her for a clear shot, she should be able to take out at least a dozen of those things," Duncan said.  
  
"Okay Mac, one more thing," Richie said.  
  
"What?" Duncan asked.  
  
"How many people did you kill?" Richie asked.  
  
"So what'd he say?" Joe asked.  
  
"He'll be up here at 3," Richie said.  
  
"3? Is he crazy?" Joe asked.  
  
"You're telling me we have to spend the next 40 minutes blowing out these cadavers' brains?" Methos asked.  
  
"That's right, he said to get all the guns and everything flammable towards the door, because when he comes out, he wants us to get out of here and into the truck as fast as possible," Richie said.  
  
"I'll give you a hand," Methos said.  
  
"Speaking of which, Mac said that in about half an hour, to get Amber down here, he said we have to get her into the truck as quickly as possible since she can't run," Richie added.  
  
Richie and Methos grabbed a crate of ammo weighing about 70 pounds.  
  
"Come on, put some life into it," Methos said.  
  
"Don't you think that's asking a bit much?" Richie asked.  
  
"Lift now, laugh later," Methos said.  
  
"If there is a later I'll eat, drink, be merry and jump into an ice cold brook in my underwear," Richie said.  
  
"Well, if there's a later, I'm going to raid every ounce of liquor in the bar, and down an entire jar of olives to go with it," Methos said.  
  
"And if there's a later, I might look into jumping the country," Amber said, slowly making her way down the stairs.  
  
"Amber, you allright?" Richie asked.  
  
"Far from it, but it's better than being Alec Hill," Amber said.  
  
"How do you figure that?" Joe asked.  
  
"Because right now he's out there walking around, missing one hand and the skin on his right foot, on top of that, he can probably feel it all plus the decayed him," Amber said.  
  
"Wait a minute," Richie dropped the crate, "Mac didn't kill Alec, I did."  
  
"And you don't think Mario's after you too?" Amber asked.  
  
"Can you walk?" Richie asked.  
  
By that, he meant can you walk fairly?  
  
"It's far from normal, but it's fair," Amber said.  
  
"Well that's good, Mac just called, he said..."  
  
"I heard what he said, I listened on the phone upstairs," Amber said, "I thought it might be Mario."  
  
"So did I," Joe said.  
  
Time went by, everyone was getting anxious, Joe looked up at the clock.  
  
"10 minutes till 3," Joe said.  
  
"10 minutes till 3?" Amber asked, "That's good, we'll be leaving soon, and we better leave soon..."  
  
Joe couldn't help but notice she was talking like Barbara from Night of the Living Dead.  
  
"I'm just anxious Joe, that's all," Amber said.  
  
"I know kid, I know, we're all anxious to get out of here before those cadavers come in here and..."  
  
At that instant, they heard something, they all got up and ran out the front door, carrying the guns, ammo, matches, lighter fluid and military cocktails, and jumped in the truck. Amber, Richie and Methos jumped in the back, Amanda and Joe joind Duncan up front.  
  
"Everyone ready?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Yes!"  
  
Duncan stomped on the gas and tore out of there, with the zombies following, Amber took out a .45 ACP and fired, clearing the road behind them of the undead. However, a .45 ACP can only fire 7 rounds before needing refill.  
  
"How many more are there?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'm counting at least 25," Amber said.  
  
Richie took out a loaded CZ-83 double-action pistol, one zombie he got lucky with and blew his whole head off.  
  
"How many rounds does that one go?" Amber asked.  
  
"10, I think we should have the problem taken care of within about half an hour," Richie replied.  
  
Duncan turned on the headlights and put the truck to a rickety and complete stop.  
  
"What is it?" Amanda asked.  
  
"Uh-oh," Duncan said.  
  
There were hundreds of zombies in front of them, Duncan recognized some of them, they were Mario's lackies, he turned his entire army of darkness, into an undead one! Duncan got an idea, he rammed the thing full speed ahead, taking out a few of them along the way, now they were chasing the truck, some getting awfully close.  
  
Amber panicked and grabbed her automatic and fired at 6 of them, it took out 17. Richie grabbed his rifle and aimed at the 4 that were getting too close to the truck. Methos was busy on the side with a .44 magnum, the so called most powerful gun in the world that could blow one's head right off, which was exactly how it worked with the zombies. As Amber grabbed another magazine, a zombie grabbed her from the side of the back, Methos lit a cocktail and handed it to the zombie as Richie pulled her back in. That was it, the 6 dozen cocktails they'd made went up in smoke and took the zombies with them, then they blew their brains out as well as the teeth on some of them.  
  
That seemed to take care of it, now the zombies were rotting, lifeless corpses ready for the street sweeper on Monday. Duncan found a hideaway they decided to stay at until Mario was out of the picture. Richie moved Amber up to a room on the second floor, it was then that he noticed something was wrong.  
  
"Amber, what's the matter?" Richie asked.  
  
"This."  
  
Amber rolled up her sleeve, the zombie bit her on the shoulder!   
  
End of 23, 24's up next, the last chapter. 


	23. Beginning of the End

The Beginning of the End  
  
The Conclusion of Going My Way?  
  
"Mac, I just can't believe it, we were in this fight for so long, now it's ending this way," Richie said.  
  
"Are you sure that the zombie bit her?" Duncan asked.  
  
"She had the bite marks on her shoulder, and nothing else could leave teeth marks that big, it had to be, I just don't believe it," Richie said.  
  
"Well Rich, I never thought I'd say this, but I think this means we have to consider putting Amber out of her misery, to avoid the next reign of the Living Dead," Duncan said.  
  
That was the last thing Richie wanted to hear, he couldn't believe it, they came all this way, and to have it end like this. Amber's fight seemed to be over, not only against Mario, but for life.  
  
Duncan and Richie pulled themselves together to come to a conclusion, they'd wait until everything in her failed until they killed her. Richie had hoped that she was Immortal and would pull through it, but it seemd now the only thing that could do that would be a miracle.  
  
Half an hour went by, Amber's skin was turning paler, she was shaking, she hardly opened her eyes, Duncan knew...  
  
"How's it going?" Richie walked in.  
  
Duncan turned around, trying to maintain his composure, but it seemed impossible with what he had to say...  
  
"Richie, say goodbye," Duncan told him.  
  
"What?" Richie choked on his response.  
  
"Richie, the infection's spread throughout her entire body, it's spread too far to be stopped, you know what that means," Duncan said.  
  
Tears welled up in Richie's eyes, he had always been at Amber, now he didn't even have a chance to fully apologize, he gently put his hands at the back of her head and brought it up.  
  
"I'm sorry kid, I never thought it'd end like this," Richie said.  
  
Duncan noticed as Richie said his goodbyes, the tears fell from his eyes and down his face, that was it for Richie, he couldn't stand to see Amber like this anymore, he ran down the stairs and out of the house, with Duncan following.  
  
"Richie, I don't believe you, Amber's dying and this is how you leave her to remember you, walking out on her," Duncan said.  
  
"I couldn't stand to look at her like that, Mac, she's going into rigor mortis, couldn't you tell? Mac, I can't take it anymore, Amber shouldn't have to go through this, she didn't do anything to deserve this......dammit Mac, I'm going to miss her," Richie cried.  
  
"I know, I know, I miss her already," Duncan replied.  
  
At that time, Duncan and Richie noticed something, a rapier had come in between both of them, missing both of them by only an inch.  
  
Duncan growled and snarled, he knew who did this and he was ready to take his head off with his bare hands.  
  
"MMMMMARIO! GET DOWN HERE NOW!" Duncan yelled.  
  
Mario jumped down from the tree, he was even uglier than the last time.  
  
"Ready to fight?" Mario asked.  
  
"You killed her for an accident, and now you'll die next!" Duncan exclaimed.  
  
Duncan was ready to pounce Mario, but Mario choked Duncan, it was then that Duncan noticed he had stitches on his hand.  
  
"Oh contrare, I kill you and the boy, then your friends back at the house and make my escape, no one will ever know because no one saw a thing," Mario said.  
  
"That's where you're wrong, they'll know this!" Duncan ripped the stitches out of Mario's hand, revealing a small piece of artificial skin, covering his infected hand.  
  
"That's why she died, and now you die too!" Mario yelled.  
  
"Why the hell are you doing this?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Because you killed my father!" Mario exclaimed.  
  
"I never met your father!" Duncan replied.  
  
"That's a load of bull, you killed him, 8 years ago, in Russia, remember?" Mario asked.  
  
Now Duncan remembered, in 1991, he took a short trip to Russia and came across a man he accidentally hit and killed, that must've been him.  
  
"Mario, that wasn't intentional," Duncan said.  
  
"Like I give a damn, either way you killed him, just like your friend set him on fire tonight," Mario said.  
  
"Mario, if you kill me now, you're going to be in hell for the rest of your life and afterwards!" Duncan said.  
  
"What makes you say that?" Mario asked.  
  
As Mario was ready to strangle Duncan till he turned blue, something happened, the next thing they knew, Mario's head was rolling around like a bowling ball. Duncan jumped up to see who he owed gratitude beyond his years to, and he was shocked.  
  
"AMBER!" Duncan said.  
  
Richie turned around, Amber stood behind them with a Kotestu Katana in one hand, looking alive and well, and full of wrath.  
  
"AMBER! You're alive!" Richie exclaimed.  
  
"EASY!" Amber said, "I might be Immortal, but I'm still tender around the corners."  
  
Well, they knew what was going to happen next, someone was going to receive the Quickening.  
  
"Hope you're used to it by now, MacLeod," Amber said.  
  
However, the surprise was Amber received the Quickening, by the time she was through being electrocuted, she was on the ground with her eyes rolling around in her head.  
  
"Amber, are you allright?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Allright? I'm surprised my eyeballs are still in my head," Amber said.  
  
Well, they were thrilled to see her alive, they got back to the house, and Duncan still had one thing on his mind.  
  
"If this isn't Joe in the picture Methos shot, who is it?" Duncan asked.  
  
"Terri Transner," Richie replied, "that would be the Watcher who records everything about Amber, apparently he knew it before anyone else did."  
  
"Well, I've got a surprise for Amber, Richie, go upstairs and make sure she doesn't come down just yet," Duncan said.  
  
Richie went up to Amber's room to find her packing a suitcase.  
  
"Amber, what're you doing?" Richie asked.  
  
"I'm packing, I'm leaving, I'm sorry Richie, you're a great bunch of people, but I just can't stay," Amber said.  
  
"Why not?" Richie asked.  
  
"Because I know...Duncan was going to propose to me tonight, but I'm leaving before he pops the question, the last few years I've been worried about my life ending, now that I know I'm Immortal, I'd like to get back to my life before I settle down. That means taking off on my own," Amber said.  
  
"I know, you'll probably be gone for a long time," Richie said.  
  
"Yeah, but don't worry about me, I'll do fine by myself, now I know that there's hope for me, and Richie, I want you to promise me something. I know we'll see each other again some day, but whenever you decide to leave for some new place, let me know," Amber told him.  
  
"How?" Richie asked.  
  
"Leave me a note in the last place you stay, I'll find it," Amber said, "and tell Mac I said goodbye."  
  
A few seconds later, Duncan came in.  
  
"Where's Amber?" Duncan asked.  
  
"She left, she said that she had to move on with her life before she came back to see you again, and she said that whenever I go somewhere, leave a note in the last place I stay, you might want to consider leaving a letter too," Richie said.  
  
So, Duncan wrote a letter, it said, 'Dear Amber, I'm glad you're finally getting your life back together, however I miss you, I love you, and I want you to know that I learned a lot from you, and you made me think, I only hope that one day, I'll be able to do the same for you, Duncan MacLeod.'  
  
As he folded up the letter, he found another one already on the bed, it read 'you already have, I love you, Amber'. Apparently Amber had ways of connecting with people, at that time, she was on her way out of there, she was on her motorcycle, giving it all it had. Then, Amber noticed a large ravine in the ground, she decided to try and jump it like she did the building roofs. She went back and circled to build up speed and landed in just the right area. Apparently now that she had her life back, she was going to experience with a bunch of things she never thought possible. And she knew this wasn't the end for she and Mac and Richie, this was only the beginning... 


End file.
